April 29, 2010
by blueSKIES247
Summary: The future he saw would never happen. Until he saw it. JALEX. based on idea of Flashforward.
1. October

**This story is based on the ABC series _Flashforward_. It was a great show. "Was" being the key term here, since they rudely decided to cancel the show after one season. Sigh. I'm not holding a grudge, what? Technically, this story happens alongside the show. However, the Russos are in New York and _Flashforward_ is set in LA. So no characters interact from the two shows. **

**According to **_**Flashforward,**_** the blackout would have occurred at 2 pm in New York. However, since I decided to write the chapter before checking my facts, I have conveniently moved the blackout to 5 pm. Because I'm the author and I get to do that.**

**A special thanks to lovelylilly for reminding me to write this and giving me her opinion on this chapter :) Hope you enjoy the story.**

[October 6, 2009.]

It was just an ordinary day, you have to remember that. Everyone carried on with their daily lives. They did the tasks they always did, saw the people they always saw. Enemies still hated each other and lovers remained so. Subways still ran on time and the stars didn't fall from the sky. The day held no exceptions, except maybe a few birthdays here and there.

It was just an ordinary day, you have to remember that. But it was the day the most extraordinary thing happened, which touched the lives of every living human being forever.

* * *

"Ugh, do I really have to?" Alex plopped down on the couch besides Max with I-don't-want-to-be-here written all over her face.

"Alex, we are supporting your brother!" Theresa reprimanded.

"But it's only his geeky science class presentation. It's not even a science fair or anything. And it's bound to be boring regardless how many times he practices presenting it or who listens to it," Alex continued to complain.

Theresa sighed. "Just sit down and listen."

Justin shook his head as he opened his tri-fold display. Alex would be Alex.

He cleared his throat and stepped to the side to reveal the bullet points, quotes, graphs, diagrams, and a bit title that read MANY WORLDS THEORY. Alex yawned.

"Okay. So the Many Worlds Theory is a theory regarding quantum physics, which is a science based on a space time continuum. Quantum physics studies the location of matter, like an electron, and the time it existed there." Justin paused to see the looks on his family's faces. Whoosh. All of it went right over their heads.

"Anyway," he continued, deciding to speak fast before they all fell asleep on him, "the Many Worlds Theory provides a possible answer to the many questions of quantum physics. It suggests that an infinite amount of worlds exist and every time a decision is made or a path is taken, the world splits into one new world for every alternate choice.

"For example, the Schrödinger cat is a hypothetical cat that is placed in a box and, well…uh…" Based on the absolutely lost looks on his family's faces, Justin decided that maybe his well thought-out, scientific explanation was too much. Like Alex said, this wasn't even a science fair of science nerds that cared. This was a presentation in his high school class, where he sometimes wonders if the teacher even knows what she's talking about.

So instead, he walked up and took Alex's hand. He placed her open hand palm up on his while she gave him the strangest are-you-psycho look he has ever seen. "So pretend there is a small cat on Alex's hand and a dish of poisoned cat food. If the cat eats the food, he dies. If the cat doesn't, he lives. There are only two outcomes, a 50-50 chance that he will live or die. Right there, two worlds split: one in which the cat lives and one in which the cat dies,"

Justin closed Alex's hand. "What happened? Did the cat live or die? Since her hand is closed, the outside world doesn't know the answer, so in that moment both worlds exist." He opened up Alex's hand again.

"The cat lived," Alex stated, like she was certain.

"Okay then. In this world, the cat lived. But in another world, happening in parallel time, the cat died. It's like alternate universes in all the sci-fi movies. One wrong choice would lead to a whole new world in the future. Only, we can't jump from world to world. Once we decide, there is no going back. Do you get it?"

Justin had to fight the urge to laugh. Max definitely had his thinking face on again. He was trying so hard to wrap his mind around it that the gears in his head just might implode. And Alex had her mouth slightly open and nose slightly scrunched in concentration. "That…actually kind of makes a little sense," she whispered.

"What's that?" Justin sarcastically exclaimed. "Alex actually _understands_ physics?"

"Justin," Jerry warned. "Your sister is a smart girl."

Alex beamed. "Yeah! Just don't say that in public."

Pointing to a picture and carrying on with the presentation, Justin said, "And in this infinite number of different worlds that we live in, there is also the factor of a little something we call destiny. Some people think that it is already predetermined how we will end up." The picture was like a tree, many branches growing from a stem, each branch being a world split. One path was highlighted in yellow. Destiny.

"But what happens if you accidentally end up in the wrong world after a split?" Alex asked. "What if you go away from the chosen path?"

"Well as you can see on this diagram, sometimes, later on, these worlds will merge back together. It's the universe trying to push us back on track after a mistake. Like, maybe these two people were supposed to meet in a park and fall in love and get married, but the guy got sick that day. Destiny will have it that they meet somewhere else and, eventually, get right back where they are supposed to be. The Many Worlds Theory."

Alex, Theresa, and Jerry clapped. Max finally broke out of his thinking face and spoke, "Wait, I think I got it. I had cereal this morning. But in another world, I had toast this morning?"

"Um, sure," Justin answered. "We already went over…whatever."

Theresa got up to start fixing dinner while Max and Jerry stayed on the couch to watch TV. Justin still wasn't going to let Alex off that easily for the rare occasion that she actually attempted to understand something scientific and educational.

"Interesting stuff, isn't it?" he asked as he picked up the poster board and started carrying it to the stairs.

She followed him and was about to agree when she caught on to what I was going at. She's Alex. She's wicked clever. "Oh drop it! I'm just…I find the destiny thing fascinating because I'm a girl. That's all. And of course you would be the one to turn something romantic and lovely like destiny and make it explainable by physics."

"Because everything is explainable by science."

Suddenly, Justin tripped. On the ground, he found that his shoelaces, for some _strange_ reason, got tied together.

Alex smirked. "Everything? Even magic? I swear, you are no wizard at all."

With Justin still lying on the ground, she stepped over him and started going upstairs. He didn't really expect her to offer a hand to help him up or anything. Actually, if she did, he would probably get suspicious.

* * *

It was just an ordinary day, you have to remember that. And up until then, the whole day had been normal in every way.

But then the clock struck 5 pm, Eastern Standard Time.

Theresa fell, the pot she was holding crashing to the ground with a loud clang. Max, cheering for his favorite basketball team, fell back onto the couch. Jerry, well, he was already asleep. Justin collapsed back onto the floor in the midst of sitting up. Alex had climbed two steps when he knees stopped holding her up and she fell, her foot getting stuck between the steps and her ankle snapping before she landed on Justin with thud.

And outside, millions and billions of people—all over the world—fell down simultaneously. Some were fortunate and landed on something soft, like grass or carpet. Some were less fortunate. Cars with unconscious drivers crashed into everything. Surgeons passed out in the middle of an operation. Surfers fell off their boards into the water, sinking and sinking and never getting back up.

On October 6, the planet blacked out for two minutes and seventeen seconds. The whole world saw their future.

* * *

_It was dark outside. The clock on the bedside table read 10:00. But he didn't have a digital clock, Alex did…_

_Oh. He was lying on Alex's bed. That's...odd. Then there was movement beside him. She was laying there too. That's, well, slightly freaking him out a little bit._

_The second her fingers touched his arm, his whole body erupted in tingles and sparks. _

_Justin must be dreaming. He wanted to gag. But how could this be a dream? He's asleep, surely, for just a moment before he was on the floor because Alex had magically tied his shoelaces together. And it was five in the afternoon, not ten at night. What the crap? Yet, it seemed more than a dream. Everything was so clear, like he was conscious. There was also a clear distinction between the thoughts of the dream-Justin, who was obviously sick and enjoyed the touch of his little sister, and the thoughts of real-Justin, who was going to be sick soon. No matter how much he tried, though, real-Justin couldn't move his arms or legs to get the heck out of there._

_Dream-Justin was in control. Real-Justin was simply intruding in his mind._

"_Justin…" she whispered. It wasn't the stage whisper shout thing he was used to. It was soft and sweet and caring and above all, lustful. It sounded like…_

_In the time it took for him to think of what it sounded like, she was on top of him and kissing him like there was no tomorrow._

_Yeah. It sounded like that._

_Dream-Justin was thrilled, content, and (much to real-Justin's disgust) yearning for her too. Alex put her hand on his cheek, then up to his hair, then down to his chest. Real-Justin knew this was wrong in every dimension possible. Dream-Justin didn't care._

_Then, with their lips still connected, Alex's hand trailed down until she reached his jeans. That's when real-Justin realized he didn't have a shirt on. And he had no flipping idea where it could possibly be._

Justin blinked a few times. At first, he thought he was still in the dream because Alex was on top of him groaning. But then he felt the hardwood floor underneath him and heard Alex mumble "Justin!" into his chest. This time, it was full of urgency, not lust.

"Justin!" She raised her head to look at him. There were tears in her eyes. "I…I think I broke my foot. Or sprained my ankle or something."

All the confusion and horror about his dream were quickly forgotten as he gently helped his sister up. Once he was sitting upright and she was in his lap, he lifted her right leg that was stuck between the steps. She cringed and cried out in pain.

It was then did Justin notice that maybe he wasn't the only one who randomly fell asleep and dreamed. His mom was just now getting up from the floor. What was she doing there when she was cooking earlier? His dad and brother both stood up slowly and walked towards Alex, but they had a confused look on their face. And how did Alex end up on top of him anyway? Wasn't she just walking up the stairs?

"What happened?" Theresa asked. That was easily the most popular question asked in that minute worldwide.

"I don't know," Alex answered, clutching Justin's shirt to prevent herself from crying out again. "One second I was on the stairs and the next second I was on Justin. It was like I fell asleep. But my foot got caught when I fell and now it hurts so much." Her voice cracked as she hurried to wipe away the tears. Because Alex doesn't cry, not even in front of her family. Justin instinctively wrapped his arms around her to comfort her; then he remembered the dream and quickly let go.

"We'll get you to the hospital right away," Jerry said. "But the strange thing is, the same thing happened to me. I also fell asleep."

"Me too," Justin agreed.

"Me too," said Max. "And the people in the basketball game!" They all turned to the TV where basketball players, coaches, and the audience were all slowly getting up with dazzled expressions.

Theresa gasped. They all turned to see her looking out the terrace. "Guys…I think it happened to everyone."

Jerry and Max went to join her but when Justin tried to get up from underneath Alex, she shrieked and he immediately sat back down.

Soon, the sirens of ambulances could be heard from outside. Jerry turned the TV to the news station in hopes that someone, anyone could explain why everyone seemed to have fainted at the same time.

"What about me?" Alex asked. "Help?"

"Honey, there are so many car accidents out there," Theresa explained. "The hospital is probably filled with patients. A broken ankle is minor compared to all the victims out there."

"So I just get to sit here in pain?"

Theresa looked around uncertainly. "I don't know…uh…I mean, Justin, can't you do a spell or something?"

He immediately pulled out his wand, but from shock or whatever, he could not think of the right spell if his life depended on it. If Alex wasn't in so much pain right then, she would have teased him about Mr. Perfect not being so perfect after all.

"_Stop the hurt, mend the broken_," Jerry helped.

His two kids looked up at him in confusion. "That doesn't even rhyme!" they both shouted.

"It's magic, not Mother Goose!" he retorted.

Justin cast the spell and then Jerry wrapped her ankle because the spell was only a temporary pain reliever. Although he really wanted nothing more than to be away from Alex and his messed up hormones at the moment, Justin helped her wobble to the couch on one leg and then sat on the chair, as far apart from her as possible. Those were definitely not butterflies inside his stomach. He was definitely not affected by the fact that Alex sat on his lap for a good ten minutes. No, that was just dream-Justin.

* * *

"It is believed that a _global blackout_ has just occurred," the news anchor announced a few hours later. Some security camera footage was shown of people walking by and then falling to the ground, all together, just like that.

"We don't know why or how, but we do know that the entire human race was unconscious for two minutes and seventeen seconds. Not only that, in the time we were blacked out, we experienced what the Los Angeles FBI are calling flashforwards. We all had a dream-like vision of the future. And until proven wrong, every vision we had was of April 29, 2010. They were not ordinary dreams; they were a jump in consciousness. Analysts have reason to believe that anyone you saw in your flashforward saw you in theirs. Although the blackout has caused millions of deaths, the rest of humanity has collectively seen what they will be doing in six months. I'll admit, on April 29th, I will be here giving a broadcast as always," the news anchor chuckled dryly. "Further investigation is underway as we speak. We encourage you all not to panic. We need to cooperate to fix this mess."

"Oh my god, a flashforward!" Theresa exclaimed. "Like a flashback, but…you know…haha, I get it! So it's true? Whatever you saw will come true?"

Her family just stared at her because none of them have seen her this excited since…forever.

"What did you see, Mom?" Max asked carefully.

Theresa squealed. His mom actually squealed like a teenage girl. "I was in the hospital—"

"Oh my god, were you okay?" Jerry asked.

"Of course I was, just listen! I was in the hospital because I had just given birth to a baby!"

"…" "…" "…" "…"

"Aren't you guys excited? Oh and Max, you were there too. But the rest of you weren't, which was odd."

"Wait, Mom, you're having a baby?" Alex asked. "Aren't you like too old?"

Oooh. That was an insult. Theresa's excited face turned into a glare. "No I am not too old. And I'm not completely sure I'm having a baby. I'll go to the doctor's once all the blackout craziness dies down. So what did you see?"

But before the question was finished, Alex, Justin, and Jerry all ran off.

"Hmm, I wonder what got into all of them," Theresa said. "Oh well. I guess it's just you and me, Max, like in my flashforward."

* * *

It was about 2 am when Justin finally faced the fact that he simply wasn't getting any sleep that night.

Okay, it really wasn't that bad at dinner. He just had to pretend Alex wasn't sitting next to him and had to fake a coughing fit to cover for how he jumped ten feet in the air when she put her hand on his arm and asked him to pass a napkin. No, he was doing pretty well.

Then, instead of the tank top and pajama bottoms she was wearing last night, she decided to wear an oversized t-shirt instead. You would think that that would have been a good thing as it covered all her curves he had only just now recognized, but there was the problem that she wasn't wearing _any_ pajama bottoms. And as she picked up her toothbrush and hip-bumped him aside so she could get to the sink, he nearly choked on his toothpaste. And he wasn't staring at her butt or her hot pink underwear when she bent down to spit. No, not at all.

But that's just it, you know. Justin had accidentally walked into his sister's room when she was changing multiple times before. He has seen her in her underwear before. It was no big deal, really. She would just scream at him and chuck anything within arm's reach at him, then he would duck, apologize, and leave. It was forgotten within five minutes. He was never bothered by it.

They were siblings for crying out loud. They used to take baths together when they were little. Of course, they don't anymore, but it was nothing that got Justin blushing and hot.

When he went to sleep, however, instead of clearing his mind, his stupid flashforward kept replaying over and over again in his head. In the beginning, he passed off his freaking out as left-over horror of the vision. Surely he was disgusted by it, like any brother would be at the prospect of kissing his sister. But deep down, where he will never admit, he knew all this anxiety was because he _liked_ it, just a little.

Justin knew he would never, in a million years, in a million worlds, ever think about Alex that way. He was her brother! But one glimpse of her in a new perspective, one feel of her touch, and one taste of the lust, of the love, of the yearning, and of her, well that was all that it took. One sample of her drug and he is completely addicted. He can't help it.

The future he saw would never have happened. Until he saw it in his flashforward.

Today, two paths had split. One in which the blackout didn't happen and one in which it did. The second the flashforward started, Justin—and everyone else—stepped into the second world and there was no going back. Perhaps, of the infinite number of worlds out there, this was the only one he would ever dream about kissing the sleeping girl next door. But this was the world he is living in now. Even one in a gazillion is still a likely probability.

Alex was so wrong. The cat was totally dead.

Oh destiny. This is what he gets for trying to figure it out for an A in physics.

October 6th. It was just an ordinary day, you have to remember that. But it was the day Justin Russo was unwillingly pushed off the edge and started to fall...for his sister.

**There is a good chance you are reading this because you read my other jalex story _Finding May_. However, don't get your hopes up too high. This story will be less than 10 chapters, probably 6, one for each month leading up to April 29th. I don't know if they will all be in Justin's POV since that makes it very hard to reveal everyone else's flashforwards.**

**But what did you think? Hopefully the Many Worlds Theory wasn't too confusing. Hopefully it was somewhat accurate too :P**

**Oh and if you haven't seen _Flashforward_...well, I guess I don't really recommend watching it since they aren't making a season 2 and season 1 ends in many terrible cliffhangers. It's a wonderful show for geeks like me, but once you start watching it you will be addicted and then heartbroken when you watch the last episode. Just a head's up.**


	2. November

**Thanks for all the reviews. You guys rock :)**

**Note: Harper does not live with the Russos in this story. (Also, Harper living with Russos, Lilly living with Stewarts? Recycle ideas much?)**

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* * *

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[November 12, 2009.]

_Sorry, we're CLOSED._

It seemed like nowadays, all of Jerry's days pass and go with no real objective. Every morning he is the last to wake up. Theresa is already downstairs making breakfast for the kids and by 7:50, Justin, Alex, and Max are all gone. At ten, he puts on the apron, takes the chairs off of the tables, and turns the sign to _OPEN_ on the door. He makes sandwich after sandwich and tries to laugh about it, but BLTs and Meat Me in Little Italy's only get so humorous. About a quarter to four, his three children come home, and if they aren't bantering, something's up and he will probably have to investigate. Then at eight o' clock, they finally close shop and he walks upstairs, welcoming the scent of Theresa's home cooked dinner. But honestly, he'd love anything besides sandwiches. He watches some TV, separates Justin and Alex's latest fight, and prepares for bed.

And it starts all over again. The only marker for the passing of days was the daily flipping of the open/closed sign.

Some might say his life was safe, secure, and he was fortunate to have a loving family. He knows that his life is actually routine, bland, and the only reason his teenage kids don't hate him is because he hardly knows them at all.

Every day is so predictable. He hates it.

"Alright kids," he said, turning back after flipping the sign on the door. "Let's clean up as fast as possible because your mom is making enchiladas."

He stacked the last chair onto a table and Max went by, mopping the floor. Justin finished cleaning the kitchen and Alex carried the last remaining sandwich baskets on trays towards the garbage. A techno beep sounded through the restaurant and Alex amazingly balanced all the trash onto one hand while she read her new text with the other.

Then Jerry saw it coming.

Max zoomed by, taking his mopping job a little too over the top. Alex continued to walk right towards the wet floor, reading her phone and ignoring the world. Justin exited the kitchen and threw the rag onto the counter. He was heading in the same direction as Alex. Jerry ran towards his two older kids while bracing for impact.

"Wh-omigod!" Alex's walking boot slipped on the just-mopped floor and started falling. Jerry unbelievably got there on time and took the tray of trash before it crashed to the ground. Justin reached out and grabbed Alex around the waist to prevent her from falling and hurting her foot again before it even fully healed. And Max kept on mopping.

"That was…kinda cool," Jerry admitted about the avoided disaster. "Don't tell your mother."

Alex regained her balance and stepped over the wet puddle. Justin immediately drew his hands back and the two kids looked at each other, and then quickly looked away. Before the odd silence consumed them, Alex turned and went upstairs, the Velcro on her walking boot making a crunching noise every step she took.

Jerry was about to open his mouth and ask Justin what the heck was that, but Justin headed upstairs just as soon as his sister was gone. Which left Jerry standing there wondering if any father ever truly understood their kids.

After he confiscated the mop from his youngest son, they followed upstairs where Theresa was just setting the table for dinner. Alex and Justin still sat next to each other like they always do. But today—and maybe it was just him—it seemed like they were sitting as far apart from each other as possible. Or rather, Justin was sitting as far apart from Alex as possible and she wore her trademark up-to-no-good grin.

It was probably some cold shoulder thing.

"Wow, dinner smells great Ti—" Jerry clamped his mouth shut. Oh no.

"Did you just call me T?" Theresa asked.

"Uh, yeah…" Think of something, think of something, think of something! "You know, it's what all the hip, gangster teens are doing these days. Right, A?"

Instead of helping Jerry, Alex slapped her own forehead, a move he's learned to say 'oh my god, why are you doing this Dad, can you possibly embarrass yourself any further?'

"Whatever you say, J." Phew. Theresa wasn't mad at him; he even got a grin from her.

It was a close call. Jerry almost called his wife _Tina._ He was doing so well today, too. He didn't even think about Tina until he accidentally blurted out her name over dinner. And now that he was thinking about her, his flashforward flooded his memory. Even after a month, the vision never faded in clarity.

"_Jerry! It's so good to see you! It's been so long!" the blonde beauty in front of him said. She still said everything with an exclamation mark, he noted._

"_Wow, Tina!" Jerry greeted back with the same enthusiasm. "Imagine the odds of running into you. What are you doing here in New York?"_

"_I live here now! I got a job in the publishing firm!"_

"_Wow."_

"_Yeah! Isn't it ironic, one of the reasons I broke up with you is because I loathed the thought of living in the city, yet here I am! In the city!"_

"_Yeah. Really ironic."_

_There was an awkward silence where even loquacious Tina Goldberg didn't know what to say. "How have you been, Jerry?" she finally asked._

"_Good. Well, as good as a dad with three teenage children can be."_

_Something about the way Tina looked at him make him finally open up and spill everything. "My eldest son is so smart at everything he does, and he's listened to everything I say, following all the rules until…until now. And it's all because of my daughter. She's never done what I tell her to do, but I mean, I've grown used to it. I just hate to see her rebellious nature rub off on Justin when he's got so much potential. Then there's my youngest son. Honestly, none of us know what to do with him. And my wife…she is having a baby as we speak. But I can't go see her."_

"_A baby? Congratulations! But why can't you see her?" Tina asked, her voice full of concern._

"_Because she kicked me out of the house."_

"_What? Why on earth would she do that?"_

And then the flashforward ended and he woke up on the couch desperately confused. Imagine knowing that your wife will hate you, kick you out of your own house, forbid you to see your own baby, and yet you don't know _why_. Also, what was that bit about Alex and Justin? If only the flashforward would have gone just ten seconds longer.

The flashforward has been stuck in his head ever since that October afternoon. He can't get it out. He wants to tell Theresa and his kids, but how can he? How can he admit that some time in the future, he will do some unforgivable act? How could they ever trust him again?

"Dad? Aren't you going to eat? If you don't hurry Max will steal your enchiladas."

Jerry snapped out of his reverie and sat down at the table. Max had accidentally spilled salsa all over his shirt and Alex was laughing while trying to wipe it off. Her elbow went back a bit too far and hit Justin in the head. In retaliation, he threw his napkin at her before all three kids burst into laughter. Theresa watched with that smile on her face. These were their kids and they love them.

Jerry reached over and patted his wife's stomach. She had gone to the clinic and was tested positive. They were having another baby.

"I love you all," he said, meaning every word.

"Oh dear," Theresa teased. "Your father is being all emotional again."

They laughed and continued with dinner. Jerry was never more confused. His life was perfect, he realized now. Yeah, it was boring and dull, but he had his family, his wonderful family. This was supposed to be a moment of happiness. So why was he wondering how many more joyful dinners were left?

* * *

[November 21, 2009.]

"Oh hi Zeke, come on in," Max opened the door.

"Zeke! What are you doing here?" Justin greeted from his spot at the counter.

"I actually came to share something with you all," Zeke said. "Have you guys been on Mosaic yet?"

Just then, Alex came downstairs and Justin felt the wind knocked out of him. She was wearing a skimpy tank top and jean short, oh very short, shorts. Her large, black walking boot was the only thing that hid any portion of her leg. Was it just him, or was she grinning devilishly at him? Anyway, maybe she shouldn't dress so comfortably at home anymore. For his sake. Because the flashforward was starting to take over his mind and he was certain he was going crazy.

At least it was getting better now. Before, when Alex still had her cast on, she would whine and become a lazy baby whenever she had to walk anywhere farther than hopping distance. Justin had pointed out many times that she owned crutches and that's what they were for. But Alex only stuck her tongue out and held her hands up, waiting for him to pick her up. And he didn't dare complain because Alex would only slap him for "implying she's fat" or tease _him_ for being fat. Not that carrying Alex around was so bad. He had to say, he kind of welcomed the closeness. But that was the problem. He wasn't supposed to like it.

"Hi Zeke. What's this about Mosaic?" Alex said, walking over and (purposely? accidentally?) rubbing her bare leg against Justin's hand which was resting on his knee. He momentarily froze, thinking that if he stayed still, then the butterflies would too.

"Here, Justin. Can I use your laptop?" Zeke asked.

Justin politely pushed his laptop over and the family gathered around. Zeke's fingers flew over the keys and clicked on a site with a globe in the middle. "This is Mosaic. There's a special unit in the LA FBI that is investigating how, who, and what caused the blackout and if it will happen again. They're calling it Mosaic because they want to piece together all the flashforwards to create a bigger picture; they want to know what will be happening in the entire world on April 29th. On this website, you type in what you saw and then it will search for matching key words to find others that were around the same place as you. And by using everyone's flashforwards…"

"…they can create a mosaic of the future," Justin finished. Wow, that was cool stuff.

"Yeah. For example, I just submitted my own flashforward last night." Zeke typed his own name in the search bar and his flashforward submission came up. "In my flashforward, I am working in a fancy Italian restaurant. I wait on tables, talk to many customers, and serve all the food with an unexpected grace, blah blah blah…

"But here's the best part!" Zeke clicked 'related flashforwards' and a Mr. Giovanni came up. "This Mr. Giovanni owns the restaurant in my description. He saw me being an excellent waiter in his flashforward and he found me on Mosaic. He _hired _me today! He hired me, without an application or an interview or anything, just because he knew I would be a great waiter!"

"Whoa! That's awesome!" Justin raised his hand up for a high five.

"Congratulations, Zeke," Jerry said, "I'm proud of you."

There was a brief pause as the excitement settled down. And then, before Zeke even said it, they all knew what was coming. Both Justin and Alex managed to take a small step back in hopes to escape but too late. Zeke already inhaled and the question was set free.

"So what did you see?"

BOOM. Truth bomb just exploded. Justin has cleverly gotten out of every other time someone asked him about his flashforward in the past month. But there was no way out of this one.

"Well, Mom is pregnant! She saw herself having a baby," Alex said with enough exuberance to get herself out of telling her own flashforward, at least for now.

"You are, Mrs. R? Congratulations!" Zeke hugged Theresa and she beamed.

"Yeah, we're having a baby. I was a little unsure in the beginning, but then I realized Justin is about to graduate and go to college. Then soon Alex will be gone too, and then Max…and I wasn't sure I was ready to live without kids. So I decided having this baby would be a good thing."

Zeke gave Justin a good pat on the back. "Looks like you'll be a big brother! Again! Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet?"

Theresa shook her head. "No, but I get to find out next month. It's still so exciting!" She clicked on the button on Mosaic and started inputting her flashforward onto the website.

Once again, Justin and Alex tried to sneak off but the persistent Zeke turned and asked, "What did you guys see?"

They froze. "Uh…"

"Hey, Dad never told us what he saw!" Max pointed out. Justin breathed a sigh of relief. He never considered Max a lifesaver before.

"Me?" Jerry said. "Oh, I was at a coffee shop. Yes, I was buying coffee at a Starbucks. Because that's what you do at a coffee shop! I ordered a large iced coffee, a medium vanilla latte, and a medium caramel frappuccino. I'm assuming the iced coffee is for me—"

"Vanilla lattes are my favorite!" Theresa cried.

"And the frappuccino must be for me!" Alex raised her hand. "Thanks Dad!"

Justin laughed excessively, hoping to hide himself in his chuckles.

"Hey wait a second," Max said. "Alex and Justin never told what their flashforwards were either."

Justin felt the room closing in and his heart started spazzing in an irregular rhythm. So much for a lifesaver. See, he was scared of reaching this point. It would mean one of two options. One, he would have to tell the truth and admit that he saw him kissing his sister and kind of liked it. And then, you know, probably get arrested or something. That possible world didn't seem very enticing.

"In my flashforward I was hanging out with Harper."

Wait, what? Did Alex just say…?

"Harper and I were at the mall," Alex continued. "I was buying this really cute shirt and the saleslady was being really nice and saying I look really hot, but then again I think that's just salesladies' jobs, right? So I bought the shirt, but Harper didn't buy anything because, well you know, she makes her own."

Justin was utterly flabbergasted to the infinitieth degree. Alex saw herself with Harper? At the mall? And not with him? What? Didn't they say if you saw one person in your flashforward, then they would have seen you too? So how could Justin have seen Alex in her room, yet she saw herself at the mall a few blocks away? What did they say about conflicting flashforwards?

"Oh. That's boring," Max said dejectedly. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Psssh," Alex said. "I just, uh, you know, I didn't want Mom to get mad because I wasn't at the hospital. I don't know why I wasn't at the hospital, and I'm sorry ahead of time. Oh and Dad, since I already saw myself buying that gorgeous shirt, I'll take that 40 bucks anytime in the next six months."

"That's okay, honey. Maybe you didn't get my call. Or, you know what, I probably tried to text you and ended up doing it wrong again. Do you want to enter your flashforward in?" Theresa asked, stepping away from the laptop.

Alex seemed to pause before she recomposed herself. "Uh, no. I mean come on, I was just shopping."

Justin was still confused and shocked when Alex turned to him, an evil smirk on her face again. "So Justin. _What did you see?"_

All faces turned to him. The room kept getting smaller. The temperature kept getting hotter. His stupid heart kept beating faster…

Would he tell the truth, and be proved a sick man? No. So he went with the second option and chose the second world: lie his pants off.

"I was, uh, in a cab. On my way to the hospital to see you, Mom! You had just called and told me you had the baby and I was on the way. It's just there was a lot of traffic, that's why I wasn't there on time. That's why I wasn't there in your flashforward. Yeah." Justin had to give it to himself. That was pretty good, actually.

"You should put it on Mosaic!" Zeke urged. "You never know, a cab driver might be out there looking for you."

Justin shook his head no. "Nah, I'm good. If I found the guy earlier, it would ruin the surprise." But really, he felt that writing the fib out would make it more of a lie. And lying just feels so wrong. He suddenly saw the weak link of his master plan: how was he going to keep fabricating this false story if he gets a severe case of paranoia whenever he lies?

"That was your flashforward? _Really_?" Alex asked, leaning perhaps a bit too close to Justin for comfort. When he looked into those beautiful eyes, he was inundated with a tsunami of mixed emotions. He was still plenty confused and shocked, but was also hit with an instant desire for her to be closer, now add in a hunch that something suspicious was going on, and Justin's brain was officially in an erratic jumble.

Alex saw a different flashforward. And that could only mean two things. Either something is wrong with her, or something is wrong with him. Or maybe something is wrong with both of them. So three explanations to this bizarre dilemma. More likely than not, though, Justin was going insane.

Yet one thing seemed certain, as Alex reached over and stole Justin's glass of juice with an unnecessary wink, and it was the fact that Alex had an idea of what Justin really saw. Somehow, she knew he saw himself kissing her and she knew he was very much affected by it. She knew all her tantalizing was killing him.

She knew what she was doing to him.

And she liked watching him suffer.

Well Justin wasn't going to just let her walk all over him. He didn't know how exactly she learned of his vision. She probably used Max's old macaroni tube and listened to his thoughts when he was sleeping. That's it. He made a decision right then and there that he would not fall to her mocking and teasing. He would not give her the satisfaction of watching him in agony. No, for once in their life, Justin Russo would not let his sister win. Not this time.

For a fraction of a second, he even considered giving her a taste of her own medicine. What if he walked around the house without a shirt on? Then he remembered that first, Alex did not have the same vision; second, Alex did not long for him like he longs for her; and third, _seducing_ his sister…well…that's just plain wrong.

* * *

**How many of you thought the worst about Jerry? You thought he was cheating with that Tina girl, huh? ;)**

**So what are your predictions so far? How come Alex says she saw something else? How will the lies get revealed? Tell me your theories, I would love to know.**

**Oh and one more thing. I want a beta for this story. Why not. But instead of some random beta who I've never heard of, I'd rather it be one of you readers, since obviously you like this kind of stuff. So if you feel like beta-ing (you don't even need an official beta profile, I just want a proofreading buddy) tell me. Thanks, bye.**


	3. December

**Sorry this chapter got out so late. I got caught up in my other story. Anyway, a special thanks to my two chosen betas Baku babe and Ria-Dancer Girl. Baku babe helped with this chapter :) Oh and Ria-Dancer Girl, WHERE ARE YOU? and the search for the missing beta begins...**

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* * *

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[December 7, 2009]

It was another typical day at the Russo household. You know, if the Russos were considered anything close to typical. They were all gathered on the couch and armchairs "watching TV". But really, no one was.

Theresa was leaning back , all cozy, with her eyes fixed on the screen, yet her mind was going through every name she has ever know. If the baby is a girl, should she name it Felicity or Ana? If it is a boy, should she name it Owen or Matthew? Then she realized it would be a lot easier once she knew the gender of the baby, which is what she's going to the doctor's for tomorrow! And then she _really _couldn't concentrate on the reality game show when she was so hyped for the next day's event.

Jerry laughed as a contestant fell into a pool of mud on the show. But on the inside, he could care less for some Richard from Raleigh making a fool of himself for public entertainment. It has been nearly two months since the blackout and his family was doing perfectly fine. No one hated him. His wife still tapes signs to his back, his daughter still manipulates him on a daily basis, his older son still over-studies for wizarding lessons, and his youngest child is still as clueless as ever. Nothing changed. He hasn't done anything wrong. And that worries him. He doesn't know how long he can bear the weight of knowing something bad is about to happen.

Justin turned the volume louder, trying so hard to immerse himself into the hilarities of the television show, but he knew it was to no avail. How could he focus on an old man running down a slippery surface when Alex had placed her hand on his left leg? He didn't dare turn his head or even move his eyeballs to see her face. He already knew she was grinning victoriously. Of course, he could just remove her hand from his leg…Taking a breath, he put his own hand over hers, ignoring the heat from the touch, and gently pushed it away. In response, she only slid her hand further up his leg, in dangerous proximity to his crotch. Great. That worked out well. Now he really can't pay attention to the show.

Alex picked up a grape and tossed it into her mouth. Perhaps she was enjoying this a little too much. "Oh look! The chick did a whole flip in midair but still landed on her butt!" she exclaimed. She laughed and elbowed Harper on her left and patted Justin's leg on her right. She got a chuckle from Harper, as expected. Justin stiffened up, as expected. Leaning over slightly, she turned to observe her brother. You could tell he was making much effort to not look back at her. This made her smile. For he just made it so easy.

Harper kept one eye on the screen and one eye on the girl next to her. See, she was a supersneak like that. If she had turned her head a full ninety degrees to stare, Alex would know right away something was up. But if she kept her composure and pretended to watch TV, she can get away with watching Alex. Something wasn't right about Alex these days and she was determined to find out why, because that's what best friends are for. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Alex rest her head on Justin's shoulder. She was always amazed at how close those Russos were with each other.

Max was thinking. And when he thinks, we all know it never ends well.

* * *

"Wow. That's great. Thank you so much…Yeah. So I'll drop by tomorrow…Thanks, Calvin. See you later…Bye."

Max turned off the TV after the show was over and shifted his attention to his father. "Who was that, Dad?"

Jerry walked back to the living room with the phone still in hand. A big smile was plastered on his face. "Fabulous news guys! We're going on a European cruise!"

The family erupted in laughter and cheers.

"But how?" Theresa asked.

"I entered the contest at the grocery store across the street," Jerry explained. "You know, those 'win a family getaway sweepstakes' that no one enters because they know they aren't going to win? Well I entered. And I won! December 19th, we're on a plane to Rome and it's off to the cruise we go."

"Oh my god, that's so cool! I always wanted to go to Europe!" Alex exclaimed. She gave Max and Harper each a high five, but Justin refused to slap her hand. He looked straight forward, unmoving. Which is weird considering he just found out his family won a vacation cruise to Europe. So instead, Alex just high fived his face and continued in her excitement. Siblings. What are you going to do?

"Aw, congrats you guys," Harper said wistfully.

"You should come with us!" Alex said. "Please Dad?"

"That's alright with me," Jerry agreed and Theresa nodded as well.

"Thanks guys, but I'll pass," Harper said dejectedly. "I have to go to my family reunion during winter break, remember? As much fun as the cruise sounds, I'll be stuck with great-Aunt Cathy."

"Aw, too bad. Now I have to cope with another family vacation. Oh well, I'm going to change my facebook status to 'I'M GOING TO EUROPE, SUCKERS!' and rub it in everyone's faces!" Alex said and ran upstairs with her phone. Justin smiled, then frowned, and then groaned before trudging upstairs after her. Theresa and Jerry went into the kitchen to pour themselves some tea and go over the trip details. That left Harper alone with the youngest Russo.

"So Max, you excited for the trip?" she asked.

"Totally. I'm going to eat French fries…_in France_!" he said.

She just nodded along and smiled politely. He got that a lot. An awkward silence fell between the two. Since Harper didn't associate herself with Max much (apparently, she thought he was strange or something), the two never established as close of a relationship as Harper did with the other members of the family. For someone who was at his house more than she was at her own, Harper was quite frankly an acquaintance. Acquaintances are only one step away from strangers, who always seem to come down to small talk. And small talk usually revolves around one subject, which has recently conquered weather chat.

"So what did you see, Max?"

"Well, you know my mom is pregnant, so in my flashforward I was in the hospital," Max started explaining.

"Oh yeah!" Harper said excitedly. "I can't wait for the new baby Russo. I get to be an aunt!"

Max opened his mouth to continue sharing his flashforward, but Harper cut him off, anxious to share her own. She didn't even bother letting him finish.

"In my flashforward, I found out I was entering a contest," Harper said. "See, there's this contest that the duct tape company hosts called Stuck at Prom. If you and your date make a costume out of duct tape and wear it to prom, you are eligible to enter. In my flashforward, I was in my room with rolls of colorful duct tape all around me as I worked on my dress. It looked fantastic. I didn't even know about the contest until I saw it in my vision. The first place couple gets $3000 each in scholarship money!"

Max stared at her speechless.

"Yeah, I know. I was shocked too. But a duct tape prom dress is totally my kind of thing, I just can't believe I didn't think of it sooner!" Harper smiled widely.

Sitting on the couch, Max could not believe his ears. Harper was making some weird dress out of tape during her flashforward? And not shopping with Alex? _What? _"Wait, I thought you were with Alex in your vision," Max asked.

She shook her head no. "I was definitely making my dress. As if Alex would ever get caught doing anything like that. Did you know she doesn't really like my outfits?"

But Max was barely listening. How could this be? It's already been proven time and time again that these flashforwards are not mere nonsense but an accurate vision of the future. When you see someone in your flashforward, they also see you. So how is it possible that Alex stated she was with Harper, yet Harper claims she wasn't? Obviously, one of them is lying. And call him crazy, but Max doesn't think Harper is bluffing.

Then Alex shouted for Harper and she bounced her way upstairs, leaving Max pondering what he just discovered. If Alex was lying about her flashforward…then what did she really see? And how bad can it be if she is forced to lie about it?

* * *

[December 19, 2010]

Justin usually loved airports. He loved the idea of traveling somewhere new for him to explore. He was an around-the-world type of person while Alex was more of a stay-at-home-rather-than-travel-with-my-family type. Which was another reason he loved airports: it pissed his sister off. Especially when their mom forced them to wear matching outfits.

But today, Justin didn't like the airport or the prospect of being on a cruise for the next week and a half. While cruises are fun and exciting, they do come with a disadvantage. Once you board, you can't get off (unless you're desperate enough to jump overboard.) Justin didn't like the fact that he was going to be stuck on a boat with his sister for any period of time. All her flirting and superfluous touching was really getting to him. Surely his parents _must _have noticed? But no, his mom and dad don't think anything is wrong, which leads him to believe that Alex has always acted like this around him. He just never got bothered by it until now.

In the end, it was still all his fault. And his stupid flashforward's fault. He was sick. He felt attracted to his own sister.

The voice announced over the speakers that the plane to Rome was now boarding. The Russo's lined up with all the other passengers, Alex standing right next to Justin of course. The flight attendant checked their tickets, wished them a pleasant flight, and guided them to their seats. At this point, Justin groaned and realized fate really was up against him.

They were seated near the back of the plane so there were two seats on each side by the window and three seats in the middle. And his mom, his dad, and Max just had to take the three middle seats. Alex giggled and slipped into the window seat while Justin reluctantly sat down beside her. Almost immediately, she rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes—it was seven in the morning and Alex doesn't normally wake for another three hours. Justin tried to keep still and pretend she isn't there, but then she snuggled up against his arm as if he was her own personal teddy bear, leaning as close to him as possible. He'd be lying if he said he felt nothing when she did that. He'd be lying if he said her touch didn't make him feel on fire in a good way. He'd be lying if he said that didn't make him hate himself.

Yeah. This was going to be a long flight.

When they stepped out onto the Rome streets, Justin couldn't have been more relieved. The entire plane ride was filled with flight attendants glancing at him and Alex while saying how cute they were. He tried to explain that she was his _sister _but the ladies didn't want to listen. Theresa had brought maternity books for the ride (she needed to freshen up on her memory for her new baby _son_!) and Jerry had found his old Beatles mix-tape and even older walkman so neither of his parents was aware of the giant misunderstanding happening next to them. The worst part was probably when the little girl sitting behind them, no older than three, walked up and stared at them before she asked him, "Is she your girlfriend?" While he was appalled, Alex only laughed.

They walked down the street and around a corner before Jerry waved his hand for a taxi to take them to the harbor. Then they were struck with another problem. How was the five of them going to fit in a taxi?

"Why don't I take the kids and you grab another cab?" Theresa suggested to Jerry.

"And pay for two taxis? I don't think so," Jerry replied. "We can squeeze. It's Rome. Who follows the law? Alex can just sit on Justin's lap like before."

"Dad, you can't be serious!" he argued. "I mean we're not kids anymore! And…and…" He realized he had no way of justifying his claim since he would either admit his feelings for his sister or wind up saying she's fat. And both options lead to awful consequences.

Jerry called a cab and the whole family climbed in after putting their luggage in the trunk. Justin and Alex got squished against the window, Max in the middle, Theresa on the other side, and Jerry sitting in front conversing with the driver in his broken Italian.

As a comfortable silence fell upon the two of them, Alex started playing with his hand. He sighed and pulled it away. "Why are you doing this, Alex? They'll see!" he whispered softly.

She seemed shocked at the question. "Doing what?" Jerry and the driver's loud Italiano covered up Justin and Alex's conversation, which Justin was thankful for.

"This." He gestured between the two of them. "We've been fighting with sibling rivalry for years, as we should, but now all of a sudden you want to hold my hand?"

Alex kept a straight face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. I mean, at first I thought you were just trying to get on my nerves, but you've kept at it for months now. I'm annoyed, okay? Can you stop now?"

She continued to play the innocent card.

"And how did you even find out about it? Max's macaroni tube? The thought spell? God, Alex, you just don't know when you take things too far."

A smile broke out on her face. "You think I listened to your thoughts to know about…?" She muttered the spell and suddenly her voice was in his head. _Like this?_ _You think I did this? Okay, sure, Justin. This is exactly what I did_.

Now Justin was confused. _Wait, what?_ He thought. He also needed to be careful or else she'll see how he's really feeling.

_Sometimes, you're just so stupid. Sure, maybe I fooled everyone else, but you…how can you not…never mind. I guess it makes it all the better for me!_ she laughed at some private joke. _And I didn't take things too far, because you still haven't snapped yet. You're a lot stronger than I thought._

_Snap?_ He was about to ask her what she meant when she reached over to grab his hand again. She slid her fingers between his and smiled. And he got distracted.

* * *

[December 24, 2009]

Max took the key out of his pocket and unlocked the cabin. Because Jerry was so stingy, he got two cabins for the five of them. This is what he always does for hotel rooms whenever they go on vacation. But in hotels, they'll sometimes get a suite with a pull-out bed in the couch, or at least the bed is king sized so Max can share with Justin. Cruise ships are a whole other story. These mattresses are smaller than twin sized, and the cabin room not much bigger. Somehow, Max, Justin, and Alex were all supposed to sleep on two measly beds.

Well, Alex had a solution for that. Being the loving older siblings that they are, Justin and Alex claimed the two beds and gave Max an extra blanket and pillow to bunk on the ground between them. Justin did try the _Max is the youngest so he sleeps on the floor, give him a mattress so he sleeps there no more. _But that mattress was all lumpy and Max was better off on the floor anyway.

As he stepped inside and flicked on the lights, he kicked aside his pillow on the ground and sat down on Alex's bed.

Today was Christmas Eve. Yet he was here alone.

Theresa and Jerry were at some adult party in the ballroom upstairs. Even though Jerry didn't dance, it seemed like he was trying especially hard these days to make Theresa happy. Max wonders what his dad ever did to be obliged to make it up to her.

For a while, the three Russo kids were hanging out on the pool deck near the snack bar. Alex was talking to some college guys from England and Justin was sulking on the side for no apparent reason. Max was satisfied with his extra large slice of cheesecake.

The college guys said that there was 16-21 year old party in one of the lounges and Alex and Justin agreed to go. There would be gift exchanges and games and other fun stuff. It didn't even cross their mind that Max was only 14 so he wouldn't be able to go.

And that's how Max ended up in his room alone on Christmas Eve. The clock said it was 11:03 pm. He usually went to bed early on this day so he could wake up early on Christmas and open presents. His parents and siblings all think he still believes in Santa. But come on. Max isn't the smartest kid, but he's not stupid. He only pretends to believe so he'll get better presents. No one would expect such ingenuity from him.

But there was no point in waking up early tomorrow. Alex said that there was a "Cruise Santa" that delivered presents to every room in the wee hours of Christmas morning before anyone was awake. Then parents delivered their gifts that they packed in their suitcases. Pretty lame, really.

By 11:27, he was bored out of his mind. He even contemplated doing his winter break homework, then laughed at himself. Instead, he thought about Alex and her lying about her flashforward. He still hasn't figured it out yet, but maybe if he stayed persistent, he'll get the end of the mystery.

Where was that mind reading tube when you need it?

The only likely possibility was Alex saw herself committing a crime or something. And although Alex is a bit of a rebel, she isn't anywhere near the type to steal or do something illegal, that much Max knew. So what felony could his sister be capable of committing?

Another twenty minutes of ceaseless flipping through the ten channels on the small TV and Max had to get out of the room before he got claustrophobic. He figured he'll just get himself some pizza from the 24 hour pizza bar. That place has become his favorite part of the ship these past few days.

Getting in an elevator, he pressed the floor 7 button and waited patiently. A few partygoers entered and left the elevator before Max got out at his floor. To get to the pizza bar, he had to walk around to the other side of the giant, circular atrium.

The cruise hallways were basically empty about now. The passengers were either asleep in their cabin or dancing in one of the many holiday celebrations being held. Besides a few workers, Max was the only one walking. He glanced out the window next to him to see the calming black waves moving away from the ship into the night. Then he looked in the opposite direction and was met with a much less peaceful sight.

Alex and Justin were standing next to each other, leaning against the railing. They must have been there before Max arrived, for they didn't notice him. Justin was talking to her in a stern voice, like they were arguing about something.

"Justin, what's the matter with you?" she asked.

"What's the matter with _me_, what's the matter with _you_? Why are you so obsessed with those London college frats?"

"I'm not obsessed with them! I just…I like their accents. They sound funny."

"Actually, we Americans are the ones that sound funny."

"Oh whatever, genius."

Then, while Justin was about to retort, Alex pulled out her wand, muttered a spell, and waved it in the air. A small mistletoe grew above them out of nowhere. Cutting him off in his rant, Alex pointed above them to the holly mistletoe she had just created.

It sure silenced him. Alex started leaning in and Justin backed away, shock and a little fear evident in his eyes. Max was so stunned at the sight in front of him that he couldn't form the right words to shout. What was wrong with his sister?

Then Alex whispered something Max couldn't hear and Justin froze. She got on her tiptoes and placed her lips gently on his. Poor Justin, Max thought, he's traumatized with fear and can't escape. So Max made the plan right there to go and save his brother. Something was definitely wrong with Alex.

But when Max was halfway around, before he could reach them, something even stranger happened. _Justin kissed her back_.

And all Max could do was stand there. "What the…?"

Alex and Justin immediately jumped apart, staring at Max with wide eyes. "Max! What are you doing here?" Alex asked.

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

Alex and Justin looked frantically at each other. "Uh, um…you see…it's not what you think, Max."

Oh, but it _was _what Max thought. This is why they've been acting weird ever since the flashforward. This has to do with Alex lying about her vision. Perhaps Justin was lying too. What they saw led to all of this, something so terrible. And illegal.

"Why?" Max asked. He could think of nothing else to say.

They only shrugged.

"You're not going to tell Mom and Dad, are you?" Justin asked, worry traced on his face.

Max thought about it. "No, I guess not."

"Please, Max! It's really not what you think, let us explain—what? You won't tattle?" Alex asked, surprised at Max's answer.

"There's no point in telling Mom and Dad when they're only going to freak out," Max said. He sounded so mature, it amazed his siblings. "Hopefully you'll be able to solve this before it becomes a real problem."

But the look they gave told Max that deep inside, they didn't want to solve this problem.

Because somehow, his older brother and older sister were in love with each other.

* * *

**And now Max knows. What do you think guys? Does Max make a good confidant? When will Jerry crush under the pressure of his flashforward? What will Theresa name her baby? And what exactly did Alex see (even though you all probably know)?**

**Talk to me ;) Next chapter out sooner. Hopefully.**


	4. January

**Oh my gosh, I finally updated! Thank you for sticking with me, we are halfway there! Uber big round of applause to Ria-Dancer girl for editting this. Thanks Ria, I'm glad you're not missing anymore :D**

[January 1, 2010]

Off in the distance, they watched fireworks explode in the French sky at the stroke of midnight. There were so many people on the sky deck of the ship, Theresa was sure that it was a safety hazard.

"Happy New Year, honey!" Jerry exclaimed, kissing her. She smiled and automatically put her hand on her protruding belly. Yes, this would be a great year, she could tell already.

"I'm going to get us some champagne," he said, then left her in the swarm of people laughing, cheering, celebrating and kissing in the new year.

"Wow, Theresa. Jerry is just the sweetest husband," Theresa's new friend Samantha said as the two watched Jerry's retreating figure.

Theresa agreed, "Yeah, I haven't been this happy in a while. A surprise cruise? A surprise baby? A lazy husband suddenly becoming the perfect man of my dreams? It's all very…"

"Nice? Appreciated? Thoughtful?" Samantha suggested.

"Unexpected," Theresa stated. She really should just enjoy the bliss and not look a gift horse in the mouth. But she couldn't help but wonder… what brought this on? Why was Jerry acting this way? She knew all he really wanted to do on this ship was lay by the pool, maybe go to the spa, and lounge at the pizza bar. Yet the whole trip, he had eagerly agreed to her every wish and command. He willingly accompanied her to visit the foreign countries, go sightseeing, take plenty of pictures, and even go shopping. It almost made her want to ask him to get a tattoo, just to see if he would.

"What do you mean?" Samantha asked.

"Don't get me wrong, he was always a loving husband, he just had a different way of showing it. He's a sarcastic penny pincher who shows he cares by pretending he doesn't. He's _Jerry Russo _for crying out loud." Theresa left out the fact that he was an ex-wizard, obviously. "What caused this change of heart?"

Samantha shrugged. "Maybe he had a revelation and decided to be a better husband. Or maybe, it has something to do with his flashforward. What did he see?"

"He was buying drinks at Starbucks. I'd hardly call that inspirational," Theresa said. Soon, the subject was dropped, but the suspicion still remained in the back of her mind.

* * *

Jerry located the bar and got his two champagne glasses easily. It was squeezing his way back into the crowd that was the hard part. After several fruitless attempts and a hardcore ninja move to save the champagne from spilling over, Jerry gave up and wandered to an empty portion of the deck.

The stars were shining brightly and he made his first New Year's resolution. He will do anything in his power to prevent his flashforward from coming true.

"Hey, Dad!"

Jerry whipped around to see Max walking up next to him. They both leaned against the railing, watching the French night time scenery reflect in the water. Max didn't say anything more, so Jerry continued to contemplate. In order to save his marriage and his family, he first has to figure out what the problem is going to be. His cryptic flashforward didn't exactly hand him any clues. All he knows is that Alex and Justin were mentioned…

…could this all really be Alex's fault? A likely accusation, but still.

"Max, have you seen your sister? Or brother?" Jerry asked.

"No, why?" Max answered a bit too quickly. "They're probably just hanging out with their new English friends or something. I'm sure they're up here somewhere. There are only so many places you can go on a ship, you know. That's all, why do you ask?"

Jerry gave his youngest son a questioning glance. "Um, okay… Can't a father ask where his children are?"

"Sure, sure, of course you can," Max said. "You aren't suspicious of them or anything, right?"

"No…" Jerry stared at Max. "Should I be…?"

"No!" Max shouted. "Um… uh… so why are you standing here alone during the first seconds of 2010?"

Jerry noticed the not so subtle topic change but decided not to question Max's strangeness today. "I could ask you the same thing."

Max made his best mysterious face. "But I asked you first."

"I just… I just… I need to think, okay?" Jerry said. "I need some alone time to de-stress."

"I thought that's what vacations in general were for."

"Yeah, well sometimes I need to de-stress from all the de-stressing."

"Dad? Is something bothering you?"

Suddenly, Jerry had the overwhelming urge to tell someone, anyone, about his flashforward. The frustration has been building up for far too long. If he didn't vent about his doubts and fears soon, he was sure to implode. He looked up and down the deck, but besides Max, there was no one else. He would much rather spill his secret to a stranger that he'll never meet again, but instead, he will just have to settle with his own son. This could potentially end very badly.

"Actually, something is bothering me. It's been bothering me for a while now," he confessed.

"You know you can tell me anything, right Dad?"

"Max, can you keep a secret?"

Max blinked a few times before nodding. "Contrary to what you may think, I can."

Maybe it was the fact that no one believes half of what Max says anyway, or maybe it was how he knew Max would believe him. He trusted his youngest son, probably more so than his other, more responsible children. "Promise you won't tell anyone. Not Alex, not Justin, and especially not your mom."

"I promise."

"Okay, so you know my flashforward, about ordering coffee? That's a total lie."

Max's shocked expression was expected and oddly comforting.

"I actually saw myself sitting in a small café—maybe it was Starbucks, I don't know—and I was talking to Tina Goldberg. She's a friend that I haven't seen in almost twenty years. But the worst part is what I told her. I said that your mom was having our baby right then, but I wasn't allowed to see them. Not that I _wasn't going _to see them, but that I _wasn't allowed _to. I'm going to get kicked out of the house, Max. Something I do in the foreseeable future will upset your mother and I'll be in big trouble. That's what is bothering me."

"That's…wow."

"I just hate that I know something bad is coming, but I don't know what it is. I want to prevent it from happening, more than anything. But I don't know how."

Max awkwardly patted Jerry's arm. He's an awkward child, so you can't blame him. "Gosh, that sucks Dad. You have no idea what the horrible thing you'll do is?"

"Nope. The only other thing I mentioned in my flashforward was something about Justin and Alex being rebellious, but I don't think that has anything to do with it. I'm sure they did nothing wrong," Jerry explained. Max had a coughing fit then.

"That's… uh… yeah, you're right. I mean, you know Alex, she's always pulling pranks on us," Max said with a shaky laugh.

"This was no prank though, Max. Do you know how it feels to be told you are forbidden to see your own newborn son?" When Max was about to answer his rhetorical question, Jerry hurriedly continued. "It's awful. I'm super aware of everything I do and I'm trying so hard not to mess anything up. _I bought the tickets for this cruise_."

"You paid for this vacation? I thought you won it in a contest."

"I only said that so you guys wouldn't get suspicious. I knew your mom always wanted to tour Europe. Right now, I just want to make her happy. Speaking of which, I really should go back before your mom wonders where I went with our champagne."

"You should probably do that." Max nodded. "Oh, and just so you know, I believe you, Dad. I know you didn't mean to do whatever it is that you are going to do. And I will forgive you. I promise."

With a sigh of relief, Jerry hugged Max, careful not to spill any champagne. "Thank you, Max. That means a lot to me."

Jerry pulled back and dived into the mob of partygoers. With Max's support, he felt so much stronger. He wasn't alone anymore, for all it takes is two to form a team. All those stories about a child finally finding an ally in his parent, here is a story about a parent finally finding an ally in his son. He felt he could face whatever fate was throwing his way.

A bright firework exploded in the sky, forming the numbers 2010.

He sighed. He can do it. Only 119 more days until doomsday.

* * *

[January 9, 2010]

"…Justin, why is Alex sleeping in your room?"

Alex shifted in her sleep. She opened her eyes and then quickly closed them again, the sunlight pouring in through the open window blinding her at first. She pushed the blue covers down out of her face and squinted to focus in on her mother and brother talking. Theresa was halfway in the room, one hand holding onto the doorknob. Justin was seated at his desk with his laptop open and turned halfway to look at their mom.

Whoa. Justin. His desk. His collection of dolls. His full shelf of books. His TOB poster.

His bed.

Alex was pulled back to reality when she realized that she had never woken up early to sneak back to her room. And here was their mother, clear proof that her plan had backfired completely. Justin told her so.

"Oh, uh, she came in here at like five in the morning to pull a prank on me, but she tripped at the foot of my bed and woke me up. Then she collapsed onto my bed whining about how her foot hurt and how it was the ankle she twisted before. She made me go downstairs and get her an ice pack but when I came back she was already asleep." Justin lied perfectly. He must have rehearsed.

"Ah. Sounds like something Alex would do." Theresa stepped back into the hallway but then popped her head in again. "But why didn't you wake her up and make her go back to her own room?"

Then Justin stuttered. "Uh…well…s-s-she complained, when I-I tried. You know how crabby A-Alex is when she is half awake."

Theresa nodded and glanced in Alex's direction. Immediately shutting her eyes again, Alex pretended she was still asleep. "Then how come you didn't just carry her back?" Theresa questioned Justin.

"Because…" he trailed off.

"Oh that's right." Theresa was halfway down the hall before she finished her sentence. "You're a wimp."

Alex was feigning sleep but she couldn't help it; she burst into laughter at that statement. It was one thing to tease her brother about his weakness: it was another to have their mother confirm it as well. She rolled over onto her back laughed hysterically. Everything was funnier in the mornings anyway. Her giggles didn't cease until she felt the bed sink to her left and a pillow hit her face.

"Shut up," Justin mumbled, lying down beside her.

After removing the pillow from on top of her face, she looked up at him and smiled innocently. "That was some fib back there," she commented.

"I had all morning to come up with something," he said with a shrug.

She rolled her eyes. "You are so lame."

"Sorry I can't lie on the spot like you can. Sorry I'm not a natural at fooling people like you are."

"Tell me about it. I swear, sometimes, I think you're not my brother." She froze right as the last word slipped out of her mouth. That was precisely the exact _worst _thing to say.

She took a cautious glance up to his face. His expression was morose, all playfulness gone. "I'd wish for that any day," he finally whispered.

Curling up against him and not really caring who walks in on them, Alex rested her head on his shoulder. "Me too."

After breathing in sync for a long moment, Justin sighed. She felt his chest gradually sink. She wondered how it had come to this. How did one little vision change everything?

_It was dark outside. The only glow came from her clock on the bedside table that shined 10:00 in a bright green hue._

_She wasn't alone, which was the weird part. But she liked the warmth he was emitting from the other side of the bed. There was a tugging in her heart and she turned to her side, gently placing her fingers on his arm. The simple contact seemed to set her skin on fire. Warm, tingly emotions spread from her head to her toes. She wanted him. So bad._(Alex had always identified this warm feeling with her flashforward and only recently did she realize she has been experiencing this new love in reality too. Her flashforward was already coming true.)

"_Justin…" she whispered, in an alluring voice that surprised him as well as herself._

_She climbed over to straddle him and kissed him aggressively, a strong anxiety taking over her. It was like they only had so long to love, like they only had such moments to cherish. Her hands roamed his bare torso as their lips never broke contact. His touch was making her blood and pulse go haywire. There were only passion, lust, and love in her mind; guilt was nonexistent. Maybe that's the part that scares her the most._

_Her fingers trailed down his toned chest and abs finally reaching the button of his jeans._

It only took one glance at Justin after the world awoke to know just how he reacted to flashforward. He had fallen in love with her simply because he knew he would be in love with her in the future. It amused her more than it disgusted her, though. Of course, she was more strong-willed than that. And she was a better actress (although Justin's large gullibility made her life a lot easier). It would take more than a mere vision to make her go gaga for her dorky brother. Instead, she resorted to the one thing she excelled at: teasing Justin. Because if he was going to yearn for her, she might as well make him suffer and make it fun.

The plan was foolproof, or so she thought. She didn't expect herself to fall in love with him as well. That memorable Christmas Eve, she knew he was on the verge of breaking down. She could see it in his eyes. So she created the mistletoe, leaned to his ear, and whispered, "Don't you get it, stupid? I saw the same flashforward. I know what you're feeling. I know you're jealous. I know everything. You don't have to hide from me, Justin," she tried her best to sound seductive. "Kiss me."

And he did. And she discovered the flaw in her plan.

Who knew that torturing her brother for his demented feelings would cause Alex to wind up with the same twisted emotions? Who knew one little mocking kiss would awake the desire inside her and bring their relationship to a whole new level of wrong? More importantly, who knew Justin was such a good kisser? It was one thing for Justin to have a crush on his own sister. It was another thing entirely for Alex to like him back.

After their kiss of confession and the unexpected confrontation with Max, they all decided it was best if they could forget the feelings they had. They didn't want to hurt their parents or get caught. But it was terrible to endure. At school, Harper stayed glued to Alex's hip, her eyes apt to catch any wrong move from Alex or Justin. At home, Jerry and Theresa seemed to be everywhere, and Alex was growing paranoid. Alex and Justin were doing their best to act normal, to act like they were still the same brother and sister they had always been. But what happens in Paris doesn't stay in Paris. The whole week they've been back from the vacation, Alex has ignored every butterfly in her stomach, but that doesn't mean they're not there. Alex can't kiss Justin once on the cruise and be expected never to kiss him again.

So last night, when she seriously couldn't take the Justin-withdrawals any longer, she walked nimbly into Justin's room and climbed right into his bed without waiting for permission. Justin only chuckled and brought her closer to him—he probably thought it was ironic that _she _was the one being tormented now.

"What happened to forgetting our feelings?" he asked with a smile.

"Screw it." Then she kissed him with the passion accumulated all week. She climbed on top of him and brought their bodies closer, mirroring her actions in her flashforward.

"Alex," he breathed out, "I think you're a few months early."

She laughed and snuggled up against him, soon drifting to sleep in his perfect arms. She understood now why they would be in her room on April 29, making out like there was no tomorrow. Justin's touch and scent and taste were completely addicting…

"We used to always be like this, you know," Justin said, snapping Alex out of her thoughts and bringing her back to the morning. "When we were little, you used to crawl into my bed whenever there was a thunderstorm. Or after a scary movie. Or after a nightmare."

"Or when I just felt lonely," she admitted. "We used to be really close."

"What happened?"

"Well, what happens to all brothers and sisters. We grew up. We got under each other's skin. But, you know, maybe that's why siblings fight all the time. Because if they didn't—"

"—they might end up like us."

* * *

[January 20, 2010]

"Anyone see anything?" Justin asked.

Alex squinted into the crystal ball, but all she saw was the upside-down reflection of Justin, who was sitting across from her, and the decorations in the lair. "I'm not seeing anything. What are we even looking for?"

"Your flashforward! We're trying to use Dad's crystal ball to see our flashforward," Justin explained. Alex could think of plenty of things she'd rather do on a Wednesday night.

"But what's the use in seeing what we already know?" Max asked. "And why are we here without Dad?"

Justin gave a loud sigh and dropped his arms to his lap, an action Alex has named the 'I'm surrounded by idiots' maneuver. "The whole point of keeping Alex and me a secret is so that Dad doesn't find out," he said.

"Oh." Max went back to staring at the clear sphere.

"You know, they say that the flashforwards can be changed after all," Justin continued talking. "It was on the news. An FBI agent who was part of the Mosaic investigation committed suicide because in his flashforward, he found out he hit a woman with his car and killed her. That's why these visions can change. If the guy died, then the woman will never get hit by the car!"

Justin seemed a little too excited about that news, especially since it did involve the death of a man. "Why, do you want to change your flashforward or something?" Alex asked.

"Uh, well," he froze, looking uncertainly at her. "Don't you?"

She ignored the pang in her chest that his answer caused her. "That was really heroic of the FBI agent, but it might be in vain. Remember your science project? The Worlds Theory or something?"

"You mean the Many Worlds Theory? The one I did my presentation on?" Justin corrected.

"Yeah, whatever. Well, if destiny said that the lady was going to die, then one man's self-sacrificing act isn't going to change that."

Justin's eyebrows furrowed. "First, kudos for remembering my science presentation; you can retain information after all. And second, you have a point. The agent only caused the woman's life to enter a new world where she doesn't get hit by his car. But fate and destiny and the universe are going to keep pushing back until everything is on the right path again. So what you're saying is, unfortunately, the lady is probably going to die another way."

Alex nodded. "I'd rather not fight destiny." To be honest, she'd rather just be with Justin, whatever it takes. Not that she would ever admit something so cliché and mushy out loud.

Justin groaned, giving up on the crystal ball. "Flashforwards add a whole new dimension to the Many Worlds Theory. We got a glimpse of our destined future, but that is only one outcome out of the infinite number of outcomes possible. Technically, if we make one wrong decision and enter one wrong world, April 29 will be different from our vision."

"So all we need to do is find one of those world-splitting decisions and make sure to choose the other option, right? We can change our future?" Max asked.

Alex and Justin stared at their brother's sudden burst of non-stupidity.

"Um, hypothetically speaking of course," Max corrected. He looked around attempting to be inconspicuous but Alex saw right through it.

Justin shook his head. "It's not that easy, Max. Like I said, even if we did happen to take one step down a different path, the universe will try and push us back. Besides, how are we even going to know which decision is vital to our flashforward future?"

Alex thought about it. Had Justin only restrained himself from her temptation all those months because he thought he could outsmart destiny? But what if destiny had planned that all along too? Justin continued his rant but science can only hold Alex's attention for so long. Instead, she watched Justin's avid hand gestures as he described the physics of fate. Why did she never notice how attractive he looked before? Oh right. Because before, she was sane and didn't think illegal thoughts about her brother.

Blame the flashforward. Blame the kiss.

"Why do you think destiny wants you two to be together?" Max asked. His current knowledgeable observations were really freaking Alex out. Since when did her younger brother listen to Justin's quantum physics rant and actually understand it?

"What?" she said.

"Your flashforward is of the future your destiny chose for you, right? So why did destiny stick you and Justin together?" Max reasoned. "I mean, if you two were meant to be, why did destiny make you brother and sister in the first place?"

His words struck something in Alex's brain. Max was right. Everything was messed up. It wasn't _supposed _to be messed up like this. There had to be a reason the universe was shoving Alex and Justin at each other. The universe must be trying to fix a mistake…That's when the epiphany hit.

Somewhere, sometime, something must have gone terribly wrong.

"Justin, aren't there fortune tellers in the wizarding world?" she asked, impatient to test her new hypothesis.

"Yes, there are. Why?"

"Because I think they are more reliable than this crystal ball that doesn't ever work," she stated matter-of-factly.

She watched in amusement as understanding dawned on Justin and then Max. Of course they didn't think of this earlier. With a smirk, she got up from her seat and opened the multi-colored door to the magical world. Seriously, what would this family do without her?

Alex Russo wasn't sure what she was going to do with her new emotions toward Justin and she wasn't sure how they were going to settle this dilemma. So she did what she always did in the face of disaster: she put those off for later. Right now, she just wanted to know _why_.

* * *

Madame Boswell's schedule just happened to have an opening for the Russos. Alex sat with Max in the waiting room while Justin anxiously paced the small hallway. She and Max just rolled their eyes. Soon, a god awfully ugly troll stalked out of the office followed by an elaborately dressed gypsy.

"I'll see you next week, Gavin!" the gypsy called. "Alright, now are you the Russos?"

"Yes," Justin nodded.

"I'm Madame Boswell," the gypsy said, "number one fortune teller and palm reader in the entire wizarding world. Now come on in."

With a swish of her long purple skirt, Madame Boswell disappeared into her office, waiting for them to follow. Entering the room, they were awestruck by the interior design. The brilliant colored carpet, the gold draperies, the long red couch, the satin throw pillows, and the striped wallpaper gave the room a certain Romani feel. The room matched Madame Boswell's crazy outfit. As Alex, Justin, and Max sat down on the soft sofa, Alex was reminded of the time they traveled into the genie's lamp, since the décor was quite similar.

Wait a minute. Back then, she had intended to wish for Justin not to be her brother anymore, only the genie twisted her words around and ended up making Justin invisible. She had gotten her brother back, but in retrospect, the whole situation was quite ironic. Because here she was, two years later, wishing for the same thing again.

Oh destiny. You jokester, you.

"Justin, Alex, Max," Madame Boswell greeted.

Alex overlooked the strange fact that this lady knew her name without an introduction. "Hello. Can you help us?"

"I sure hope so!" Madame Boswell said. "What do you need me to do? Read your palms? See into your future? Explain your flashforward?"

"The third one, please," Justin said.

"Of course." Madame Boswell fetched her crystal ball and placed it on the table in front of them. This orb was twice as big as the one they had back home. The holder was carved out of mahogany with intricate designs etched into it. Madame Boswell waved her hand over the crystal ball and the inside begun to turn foggy. Alex was right, this gypsy was a lot better at this than they were.

"I've been getting tons of flashforward explanation requests these days," Madame Boswell shared. "One worldwide phenomenon and that's all anyone ever talks about!"

Alex suddenly felt nervous. Did they trust this woman enough to let her see the scandalous flashforward? Her act on impulse strategy was failing here; perhaps she should've thought this plan of action through before stepping headfirst into the wizarding world.

"You do have _client confidentiality_, right Madame?" Justin asked. When Alex gave him a befuddled look, he whispered, "Confidentiality means she'll keep our secret a secret." So Justin was thinking the same thing then. That made her smile.

"Oh of course," Madame Boswell assured. "If I tell other people, it might mess the whole thing up. A tiny mistake can affect a whole future. I'm only here to show you your future, not change it."

"But by telling us what's coming, you're just helping us to change it," Justin pointed out.

"If you want to mess with destiny then go ahead, that is none of my concern," Madame Boswell said. Alex was confused by the contradicting words. Hypocrite much? "Now let's see your flashforwards. Who would like to go first?"

Alex and Justin glanced at each other before Justin said, "We kind of had the same flashforward. We were together, and that's what we need help with. Max is just here for, uh, moral support."

"Two heads are better than one. Three heads are better than none." Seriously, Madame Boswell made no sense.

The fog in the crystal ball began to clear and Alex saw her flashforward, the cause of endless dreams and nightmares, being replayed in front of her eyes again. This time, the crystal ball took a third person's point of view so Alex and Justin could see themselves too. Alex had to admit, it looked worse the second time around. The way she arched her back against his chest, the lack of articles of clothing, and the deep, heated kiss all shouted 'INCEST' louder than any alarm. She quickly covered Max's eyes before her naïve little brother could get corrupted and disturbed for life.

Although she bent rules left and right, this crime was no comparison to any of the misdemeanors she's ever committed. But Alex doesn't feel guilty easily. She doesn't see how being in love with someone related to you could be so bad. If they never have children, then the world shouldn't care so much. Love is love. Or does that only apply to gays and lesbians?

"Oh my," Madame Boswell exclaimed after the two minutes and seventeen seconds of sin was over and the crystal ball returned to its opaque state. "When you said you were together, I didn't know you meant it that way."

Alex took her hand off of Max's face. "Just… just tell us how we got to this point," Alex said with a shallow breath. Justin was both appalled and pleased by the replay of the vision. Either way, he was incapable of speech at the moment.

"You want to know why the fates are against you, eh?" Madame Boswell reached over and held both Alex and Justin's hands. She closed her eyes tight and mumbled incoherent chants, using a magic that was beyond the Russo wizards.

"Oh no, oh no no no," Madame Boswell said, quickly letting go of their hands. "You poor souls," she whispered, giving them sympathetic looks.

Looks like Alex was right in her speculations after all. Their life was messed up and it wasn't even their fault. Yet being right didn't make this any easier.

"W-What do you mean?" Justin asked, tensing up next to Alex.

Madame Boswell was already taking out her tarot cards, shuffling and dealing out cards face down in front of them. She proceeded to flip over each card and grimaced when she saw each omen. Alex didn't understand the symbolic illustrations on the cards, but she figured it must be dreadful.

"This is not good," Madame Boswell mumbled. Justin, Alex, and Max shared puzzled looks. Grabbing a thick volume off the shelf, Madame Boswell finally turned to the kids. "I am so sorry, it seems like there has been a huge mistake."

She flipped open the gigantic book and instead of words or pictures, the pages were mostly blank. After a few seconds, however, two faces appeared on the pages. Alex realized that this was some sort of magic motion picture book. Then she recognized the two faces as younger versions of her parents.

"Mom and Dad?" Max said.

"Yes," Madame Boswell nodded. "For all the lives of your family's previous generations, things have gone according to plan, more or less. Your grandpa married your grandma, your uncle fell in love with your aunt, et cetera, all not a moment too soon or too late. But when it came to your parents, things went off-course. To put it simply, your mother and father should not have gotten married. Your mom, Theresa, was destined to marry her high school sweetheart Jack. They had dated steadily for almost eight years and he was getting ready to propose." The left page of the book showed various clips of Theresa's life with a man, presumably Jack, whom they've never seen before.

"And as for your father," Madame Boswell continued, "he was supposed to end up with Tina, his girlfriend of two years." The right page began showing Jerry's side of the story. The two pages played side by side. Alex scrunched her nose; it was weird seeing your parents with other people.

"So what happened?" Justin asked.

"Tina broke up with Jerry. She was indecisive about moving to New York with him and in the end, picked the wrong choice. Then, sad and distraught, Jerry accidentally walked right into the road and almost got hit by a car. The car swerved away and just missed him, but the tire rolled onto a sharp scrap of metal lying on the side of the road. After that the car continued to drive for a few miles. It wasn't until the car got onto the highway did the metal sink into the tire. One bump in the road and the tire went flat. So the car pulled over to the side of the road and waited for a tow truck."

Alex watched the images on the page. She thought she knew where this was going.

Madame Boswell paused dramatically before continuing. "Jack was always a speedy driver. He was driving home from work and merged onto the almost empty highway the previous car was on. A song he didn't like came on the radio and Jack went to change the station. If he was looking up, he would have seen the car parked towards the side and could have driven around it. But instead, he didn't see the car until it was too late. Jack crashed into the parked car going nearly 90 miles an hour."

Involuntarily, Alex gasped. She saw it coming, but it still made her sad. Justin took her hand, making her feel slightly better.

"The parked car's driver had gotten out, so he was fine. But that guy isn't related to your lives. Jack died that day. And death is one thing fate and the universe cannot change. Consequently, Theresa went to the planned Caribbean trip with her mom instead. Jerry also had planned to go to the Caribbean with Tina, but he just went by himself. The two were not supposed to cross paths. But then water was spilt and they met and they talked and the rest you know."

"Okay, but how does that affect us?" Alex asked.

Madame Boswell's expression turned soft. She reached over and patted Alex's shoulder, the bells on her dress jingling with her every movement. "Theresa and Jack were destined to have a daughter," she said, pointing to Alex. "Jerry and Tina were destined to have two sons," she said, pointing to Justin and Max. "And the older son of Jerry and the daughter of Theresa were always destined to _fall in love_."

Alex's stomach gave a lurch at those words. She just wasn't sure if that was a positive reaction or a negative one.

"So…the universe is trying to fix the big chain of mistakes by making Alex and I fall in love anyway?" Justin asked. Alex's heart skipped a beat because Justin just implied he loved her.

The gypsy nodded. "If you two get together, then fate is back on track."

The whole predetermined fate was hard to wrap your mind around. Alex and Justin were always meant to be, but their current sibling status was not their fault. Years before they were even born, their parents entered one wrong world after another. To Alex, it didn't seem fair that Justin and she have to pay for the damage their parents caused a generation ago.

"So, technically, this is all that Tina chick's fault, right?" Alex asked. "If she didn't dump Dad, then the car would never have gotten the flat, Jack would still be alive, and Justin and I wouldn't be related." She developed a strong hatred for that women right then.

"Wait, Tina Goldberg?" Max spoke for the first time since they got there.

Alex, Justin, and Madame Boswell all gave him an astonished look. "Yeah," Madame Boswell said, "but how did you know?"

"Um… nothing," Max lied. "I just heard that name somewhere before…"

If Alex's thoughts weren't so jumbled by the information Madame Boswell had given them, she totally would not have let Max off that easily.

"Our mom and dad changed their fate," Justin said, "doesn't that mean we can change ours?" Again, Justin's words were a stab to Alex's chest. Why was he intent on changing fate? He loved her, but he didn't want to love her? What?

Madame Boswell closed the book, signalling that their session was over. "There is one theory that says the blackout and flashforwards only happened because the world was too hectic and fate needed everyone to be back where they were supposed to be. It was like pushing a reset button. Unfortunately, you two are victims of fate's actions. You can try to fight it, but I wouldn't advise it. Your destiny was written before you were born. It's going to take a lot more than strong will to change it."

**Well, that was a long chapter! Over 6,000 words, it must be a record for me.**

**So now, Max has become the bearer of secrets. He's like the underdog; everyone thinks he's stupid, but he's really not. Root for him. And Jerry. And I guess Justin and Alex need your support too. You finally got an Alex POV this chapter too. I hope this was up to expectations :) Oh, and did anyone notice my date tribute to High School Musical?**


	5. February

**Sorry for the eons you had to wait for this chapter. Junior year sucks. A lot. I also edited this and then lost it. So I had to re-edit. FML. Thanks to Baku babe for pointing out weird situations and OOC moments. Hopefully I fixed it. Hopefully I didn't make it worse XP**

[February 4, 2010]

Max stepped into the Sub Station and shook the excess rainwater from his curls. The three minute walk from the subway station to his Waverly home was enough to get him completely drenched in the relentless downpour outside. He had conveniently forgotten an umbrella on one of the wettest and coldest days in New York February history.

"Max, honey, you're all wet!" Theresa exclaimed after delivering a tray of sandwiches.

"Yeah, it's kind of raining outside," Max answered, pointing back behind him out the door. A loud crash of thunder seemed to agree with him.

"How come you're home so late?" Theresa asked. "It's 5:30. School got out two hours ago and your brother and sister have both been home for a while."

"I joined the environment club with my friends, remember? Every Thursday after school we go to nearby neighborhoods and parks to plant trees or pick up trash and stuff like that. I only joined because my friends talked me into it, but it's actually a lot of fun. Remember when I told you about that? You said you were proud of me that I was trying to save the planet."

"Oh, right. It must have slipped my mind."

Yes. It slipped his mom's mind. Just like all the other things that happened to slip her mind. The soccer games she promised to attend, the field trip she promised to volunteer for, the school play she promised to watch (even though Max only had two lines.) So many events tend to slip her mind these days.

"Hey Mom, I was thinking that maybe tomorrow night we could have a family game night or go out to see a movie," he suggested.

"Sorry, I can't. I have a Pilates class tomorrow night." Theresa rubbed her growing belly. Two elderly women sitting at a nearby table congratulated Theresa on her pregnancy, which initiated her on her whole rant about how the baby was so amazing and so delightful and so this and so that…

The baby wasn't even born yet and it was already stealing all the attention.

"Go upstairs and dry off. Change into something dry so you don't get a cold," Theresa ordered.

Max slowly trudged upstairs while his mother continued to make an excited fuss about the growing life inside her. Maybe it was immature of him to be jealous of his new baby brother, but so what? Being the youngest of three Russo's was hard enough. Imagine how difficult it would be to have four of them in the house, forced to share everything.

In the lair, Justin sat on the couch with his nose buried deep within a book while Alex sat beside him absentmindedly listening to the leaves of the family tree. Ever since the meeting with Madame Boswell, the two have been endlessly researching, in hopes that they'll find anything that could possibly let them fix this mess. A time-travel spell, a destiny-changing spell, an emergency reset-all spell, anything at all would be helpful.

Alex picked up another book and started perusing its dusty pages alongside Justin. The truth was, she really didn't want to try to find a solution. She didn't want to resolve this conflict because she refuses to view it as a problem in the first place. She just wishes Justin and she could be happy together and nothing else would matter.

But deep inside, she knew the relationship she had with her brother was immoral, illegal, and incestuous. Guilt and worry slowly eats her inside after every stolen kiss.

Justin flipped the page and scanned all the useless spells. There had to be a way to fix this, for there always was a way to fix any fiasco Alex and he happened to find themselves in. This shouldn't be so difficult. If they could just find an anti-love potion that made the two of them fall out of love, surely that would do the trick.

But deep inside, he knew that he would never have the heart to drink a potion like that. He honestly only wanted to be with Alex no matter what the circumstances.

"We could just run away," Alex mumbled, shutting the book with a thud.

"You know we could never do that," Justin said.

She didn't say anything because she knew he was right.

He didn't say anything because he hoped he was wrong.

* * *

[February 12, 2010]

"Is that a heart-shaped, Valentine's Day cake?" Alex asked Harper, pointing to a blonde girl walking down to her locker with a cake in her hands.

"Aw, that's cute!" Harper squealed.

"Not my point, Harper!" Alex rolled her eyes. "I was trying to say that she, like everyone else, feels the need to showcase her gifts from her boyfriend. Those stupid girls carry their rose bouquets and 'I love you' balloons around school all day long to brag to the world that they have boyfriends. I was relieved that Valentine's Day was on a Sunday this year, but what do you know? The girls force their boyfriends to buy them gifts two days in advance on Friday so they can strut down the halls and whack single people in the face with their balloons. You know what, I am proud to be single."

"Well, you go, Alex!" Harper smiled and gave her best friend a high five. When Alex vents, you just let her rant. This is what best friends are for.

The two walked into homeroom just as the tardy bell was about to ring. The cheerleader sitting in front of Harper had on her desk a stuffed bear holding a heart that said "somebody loves me". For Alex's sake Harper sent her a can-you-believe-that look and Alex shook her head back.

Yes, Harper Finkle could tell Alex was getting quite sick of Valentine's Day and it wasn't even the real holiday yet.

Before the teacher could start class, the door opened and a student walked in with a bucket of pink and red roses. "I'm delivering some flowers," he announced. Every year, the school hosted a "Flower-gram" fundraiser. People could buy a rose and write a message for $5 and then the roses would be delivered anonymously to the significant other on Valentine's Day, or the Friday before as in this case. It added the secret admirer element to the annoying school holiday of Valentine's Day. Harper loved it as much as Alex detested it.

"A flower for Gigi…a flower for Rachel…three for you, Glenn Coco…" The volunteer handed out all the roses, making everyone else feel unloved in comparison.

"…and one for Miss Harper Finkle…" Harper perked up at her name and accepted the rose. She took a whiff of the flower and smiled at its pleasant scent. The note attached to the flower's stem had the words _I'm thinking about you today, love_written in the same slanted handwriting that Harper recognized as Zeke's. So he did remember.

"…and last but not least, a flower for Alex Russo."

What? Turning around to her best friend, Harper watched Alex take the rose with a bewildered expression. Who would give Alex a rose? Is there a secret guy Harper does not know about? When Alex caught Harper's eye, she only shrugged and looked at the note. But a grin slowly stretched over Alex's face as she read the mysterious note.

Suddenly, it seemed Valentine's Day wasn't so bad to her anymore.

Harper died not knowing who Alex's new boy was. As class continued, Harper kept her eyes strained on her best friend, trying to figure out who the sender of the rose was. But Alex simply set the rose aside and get out her notebook. The whole class period, Alex did nothing out of the ordinary. Harper was terribly confused.

When the bell finally rang, signaling lunch, Harper hurried over to Alex. "So who's it from?" she asked.

"I don't know." Alex showed her the blank note on her flower.

Wait…what?

"But…but you were smiling like you knew who it was," Harper pointed out.

"How could I know if the guy wrote nothing?" Alex asked. "Besides, I was only smiling because I got a rose in the first place. At least someone out there cares about me, you know?"

It made sense. So Harper let it slide as they both walked to the cafeteria, arm in arm, each holding the Valentine Flower-gram. Now they were the ones bragging and the other rose-less girls watched with envy. Along the way, they bumped into Justin and Zeke heading the opposite direction.

"Zeke!" Harper threw her arms around him in delight. "Thanks for the flower."

"You're welcome. I know you said how I didn't have to get you stuff like that, but I knew that deep down, you always wished you received one of those roses," Zeke said. And honestly, how great is he?

"Hey Alex, you got a rose too?" Justin asked, with an odd smile.

"Yeah." She was also doing the weird smiling thing again. "I wonder who sent it, though."

Now, was Harper seeing things, or did Justin just wink at Alex?

* * *

[February 14, 2010]

"Happy Valentine's Day, honey!"

Jerry presented the large bouquet of flowers, the heart-shaped box of chocolates, and the giant fluffy teddy bear to Theresa as she walked downstairs. Pancakes were grilling on the stove and an extravagant breakfast of omelets, bagels, hash browns, sausages, bacon, and toast was on the table.

"Wow. All of this…for me?" she exclaimed. She kissed him and went to put the flowers in a vase.

With a bright smile, Jerry thought happily, _there's no way I'll mess up. I'm going to prove the flashforward wrong. Nothing is going to happen._

He was so proud of his own actions that he overlooked the growing look of suspicion on his wife's face every time he did a spontaneous, romantic deed.

* * *

[February 26, 2010]

"Hey Justin, can I borrow your—?"

Max stopped short and blinked twice at the sight in front of him. Justin and Alex had obviously sprung apart when he opened the door but their wrinkled clothes and disheveled hair revealed their previous promiscuous actions. And yeah, Max is trying to be supportive of his siblings, but that doesn't mean the thought of them _together_ doesn't make Max want to puke.

"Never mind then," Max slowly retraced his steps and backed out the door.

"Max wait," Alex called, but he was already out the room.

"You're lucky it was Max," Justin said. "We better be careful because next time, it might be Mom who walks in on us."

"I know, I know," she nodded. "It's just that…"

"Yeah?"

Max really shouldn't eavesdrop. But he's the youngest sibling (at least until that baby is born) and it's in his nature. So he crept up to the door, out of sight, and listened to the ensuing conversation.

"I'm scared, Justin," Alex said.

"Well, if you're scared of being caught, making out with me in the house isn't exactly a good idea."

"No, I'm not scared of getting caught. We have been doing a lot of research, you know…okay fine, _you_ have been doing a lot of research about any possible spells that could fix all of this. I know we talk about running away sometimes, but it's not like we would have the guts to actually leave the family and risk everything. Maybe you're still certain we'll figure something out, but I'm not so sure anymore. I can't do this much longer, Justin. Every day I fall more in love with you, but every day the guilt inside me doubles in size. I don't know what to do."

Her voice was actually cracking, which meant she was actually crying, something she never does. Ever.

"I did find something though. Even though I'm not completely positive what we're trying to look for, I found something," she said, her voice getting softer and softer. Max strained to hear through the open door. "It's called the Lover's Regret Spell. When used, two people will fall out of love _permanently_."

"You're not seriously considering using it, are you?" Justin asked.

"Why not?"

"It's so dangerous! You think I haven't heard of it before? There have been cases where memory loss was a side effect to the spell, which means there's a chance that not only would you and I fall out of love, we would also forget each other. Forever. Would you really take that risk?" Justin said.

"…yes."

Max was this close to falling over and revealing his location. Did Alex just answer yes?

"But, Alex," Justin begged, his voice dripping in heartbreak, "what about the fortune teller? She said we were destined to be together."

"Destiny screwed us over, can't you see that? Maybe we're meant to be together, but how can we be together? It won't work, Justin. You are my brother, that I can never change."

"But—"

"In my flashforward, I felt this urgency. Now I finally know why it is. I feel like on April 29th, it will be the last chance we have to be together. Like we only have until then to love. Like in the end, we will decide to perform the spell that night."

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do!"

"It doesn't have to be like this. Plus, I thought you didn't care. I thought…well, I thought you just wanted to be with me."

"Of course I don't want to let this go. Being with you makes me happy. It always has. I loved you as my brother, even if I never admit it, and I love you now as whatever fate decided we are. There's something there between us that I never had with Mason or Dean or any other guy. You don't think I see that? I'm simply trying get rid of a love that shouldn't even be there if it wasn't for that damn flashforward. Because it's wrong. Because this would break Mom and Dad's heart."

"What about yours? And mine?"

"The spell should take care of that, right?"

"Alex." Justin wasn't fighting back, which means he had given up, which means Alex wins. As usual.

After a long silence, Justin finally spoke again. "When did you become so mature, Alex?"

"I guess love does that to people, or so I'm told."

"So you really want to use the Lover's Regret Spell? Even with all its risks? Even if it means losing each other?"

"That's why I'm scared, Justin. I love you too much to use the spell, but I love you too much _not_to use the spell. I dread both outcomes either way."

"And then that's it? It's all over?"

"What else can we do?"

Yes, it was a rhetorical question and yes, technically Alex was not aware that Max was eavesdropping from the other side of the wall. But did she ever consider, did anyone ever consider, that maybe Max had the answer all along?

* * *

**Did you notice my blatantly obvious Mean Girls reference? :) Anyway, did it ever occur to any of you that Max never shared his vision? It was always just assumed he was with Theresa the whole time, right?**

**Thanks for sticking with me and this story. Review please, I'd love to break 100!**


	6. March

**I know I haven't updated in like forever. I'm so sorry, lovelies. Hopefully this one will make it up? And everyone bake cookies and give them to Baku babe and Ria Dancer girl for their help :)**

[March 2, 2010]

In the middle of her study session in the lair (just because Alex loves Justin now, it doesn't mean she's willing to give up the family wizard tournament to him, obviously), the portal opened and in stepped the ever-smiling Mr. Stuffleby, their wizard counselor.

"Hello Alex," he greeted, "brushing up on a few spells, I see."

"Yeah, I'll be catching up to Justin real soon," she said sarcastically, brushing imaginary dust off her shoulders.

"Speaking of which, where are your brothers anyway? I have important news for you Russos."

"Oh, I'll go get them. They'll be right down." Alex walked elegantly to the door, then promptly opened it and shouted, "JUSTIN! MAX! GET OVER HERE!"

Justin and Max, as well as Jerry quickly filed into the room. "What? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Mr. Stuffleby is here to tell us some stuff," Alex waved it off and plopped down on the couch. Shaking his head but smiling nonetheless, Justin sat down beside her while Max and Jerry took the other two chairs.

"Now as you all know, you three Russos are nearing the much awaited family tournament to see which one of you will get to keep your powers," Mr. Stuffleby announced. "But if I'm not mistaken, another little Russo is about to join us…"

"It's a boy," Jerry said with a goofy smile only fathers wear.

Next to her, Justin's jaw dropped wide open as he realized where this was going. Alex laughed and reached over to shut his mouth for him.

"Congratulations. But since you will be getting a new baby brother," Mr. Stuffleby continued, "that means the family tournament will be postponed further until the youngest Russo gets his full powers and has time to learn and train his magic."

Alex nodded. It only made sense. But Justin looked like he was about to have an aneurism. "And about how long will that take?" Justin asked cautiously?

"Another fifteen or sixteen years at least."

At that, Alex and Max both jumped up in celebration. They got to keep their powers for another sixteen years! Meanwhile, Justin threw his head back and groaned.

"Sucks to be you, Justin," Alex mocked. "All that studying and hard work for nothing! Have fun trying to remember everything."

"Well this is great news," Jerry exclaimed. "Now you all have plenty of time to prepare for the tournament."

"And if I start now, I might actually have a chance to win," Max said.

"Who knows, maybe the new baby will be more of a wizard genius than Justin!" Alex pointed out.

She laughed even more as Justin leaned over to collapse face down on the couch in defeat. Looks like he didn't have the competition in the bag after all. No longer can he brag to her about how he's mastered all those spells and how he's onto independent studies and other higher things. No longer does Alex need to force herself to study if she doesn't want to lose her powers. She's got LOADS of time. All thanks to that baby brother growing inside her mom.

Mr. Stuffleby left but Max and Alex continued in their cheers of glee. Max started a conga line and Jerry and Alex started to follow him out the room when Alex remembered Justin was still lying on the couch continually hitting his head against the armrest.

She giggled at his actions. "Is somebody upset?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips.

He flipped over so he was lying on his back and frowned at her. "Very." He kept pouting until she leaned down and kissed his lower lip which made him crack a grin.

"Come on, Justin. You know you'll probably end up winning anyway."

"How do you know?"

"Because you're _you_."

She sat down on top of his stomach quite unexpectedly, receiving an _oomph _and a glare from the boy underneath her. He twisted underneath her weight and sat up so she was on his lap. Instinctively, they both glanced around the lair to make sure they were alone, then she rested her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her.

"You won the competition last time," Justin said softly. "If anyone has the odds in their favor, it's you, Alex."

"That does not count. I mean, the circumstances were different…Why do you still care so much?" she asked. "I thought we already discussed this. You'll be amazing at whatever you do, magic or no magic. Actually, why are we even talking about this at all when we just found out we are guaranteed our powers for another sixteen years? We don't have to worry about the competition for a long time."

"Well sorry if I'm anxious. It just so happens that the last time we had the competition, I lost my memory right afterwards and got sucked into a vortex of doom," he replied cynically.

She stayed silent. What he said struck a nerve.

"I don't want to forget you again, Alex," he whispered ever so softly but she still understood. "God, I don't want to lose you."

She looked up into his eyes and was once again struck with how cruel this world really is. Alex Russo is a procrastinator, anyone can attest. She didn't want to deal with this tugging of her heart. She's only seventeen for crying out loud, how is she supposed to handle something as huge as this? But it's March already and she's running out of time.

The door to the lair opened again and Justin tried to back away but Alex clung onto him. "It's only Max," she said.

And it was only Max. But then Jerry walked in after him. Even though Jerry's vision is starting to get worse, even though Alex and Justin sprung apart the second they saw their dad, and even though Max moved to stand in front of his siblings, Jerry still got a glimpse of his two children sitting awfully close and awfully intimate. No matter how they tried to fabricate a believable excuse, he still got awfully suspicious.

"What's going on?" Jerry asked, looking from Justin to Alex to Max.

There were only two options here. Either use a spell on Jerry to erase his memory or finally come clean. Any other day, Alex would have gone with the first, but at this point, she realized they were in way over their heads and needed all the help they could get. With a sigh, she glanced at Justin, who only nodded. It was time. "Dad…there's something you should know."

* * *

[March 10,2010]

Theresa put the chicken in the oven and winced at the pain in her back from bending over. She quickly set the timer and went to sit on the couch. It was times like these when she wondered why on Earth a forty-two year old woman like herself would ever think it appropriate to have another child. She's much too old for all of this. And just wait; giving birth isn't even the worst of it. The endless crying throughout the sleep-deprived nights, the diapers, the feeding, the hours and dollars spent to raise a child. Theresa knows about that, she's had three children already!

After Max was born, during one of those nights when Jerry and Theresa argued half-asleep over whose turn it was, Theresa distinctively remembered making Jerry promise that they weren't having any more children. So much for that.

But how could Theresa have said no? One flashforward was all it took. Those big brown eyes, the small tuft of hair, those tiny fingers that wrapped around her pinky…how could she say no to that?

_The hospital room was bright with generic paintings of flowers adorning the walls. Beside the bed which she was laying on, there was also an armchair and a small table. She felt tired and gross, her hair was pressed to her forehead due to sweat and she really wanted to take a shower._

_Then the door opened and in walked Max. "Hey Mom, how are you?"_

"_I'm great." But she really needs a shower._

"_The nurse is almost here," Max said. A few seconds later, two nurses in teal scrubs entered the room, one of them pushing a tiny bed while the other held a tiny baby wrapped in a blue blanket._

"_Here you are, Mrs. Russo," the nurse said with a smile, handing the infant to his mother. "Congratulations on your new baby boy!"_

_Theresa reached out and gently held her new son. He was awake but wasn't crying and Theresa loved him already (Justin, Alex, and Max were all ruthless bawlers from the start.) His eyes were beautifully brown and darted around the room, his nose was adorable, his cheeks were a rosy shade, and his mouth was small and delicate._

"_He's so precious," Theresa whispered in awe. The two nurses grinned at her and took a picture of her with the baby. She remembers thinking how lucky those nurses were: their job consists of caring for infants and seeing the love and happiness on mothers' faces when they see their child for the first time._

_Max ventured over and peered at the baby curiously._

"_Isn't he cute, Max?" she asked._

"_I guess." He shrugged but smiled anyways. And then he kissed Theresa on the forehead and went to sit in the armchair._

"_So what's his name?" one of the nurses asked. On a whiteboard attached to the small crib they just wheeled in, the nurse had written down the time of birth, the baby's weight, hair color, eye color, etc. and all that was left was the blank on top for the name._

_Theresa looked back down at the baby. He stared back up inquisitively. She felt…indecisive, yet it wasn't just over naming the baby. It was as if some larger than life decision loomed over her head. She looked back up at Max, but he only looked pointedly back, like he was saying 'it's your choice.' The nurses waited patiently as she contemplated._

_The baby sort of looks like Justin when he was an infant, she realized. Only he has his mother's chocolate brown eyes._

"_Mrs. Russo?" the nurse asked again. She must have been silent for a while. "I need a name to go on the birth certificate."_

_Theresa nodded and finally made her decision. "Could you wait for a little bit? What time is it?"_

_Confused, the nurse checked her watch. "10:02."_

"_Can you come back in fifteen, twenty minutes, please?"_

"_Um, sure…but what about the baby's name?"_

"_I don't know yet."_

_The nurse capped the whiteboard marker and left the room. Once more, Theresa glanced at Max from across the room but this time, Max was grinning ear to ear. He took out his phone and started texting someone. And almost as if the baby also knew what just happened, as if he knew what major decision she had made (even though present-day Theresa has no idea what that is), he smiled a toothless smile, closed his eyes, and went to sleep._

She heard her family ascend the stairs. "Dinner will be ready in half an hour," she announced.

Sounds of approval were made and then she heard Alex and Justin walk upstairs while Jerry and Max walked over and sat down beside Theresa, eyeing the three baby name books on the coffee table.

"Still trying to come up with a name?" Jerry asked.

"Yeah. I've been thinking about my flashforward lately," Theresa said, rubbing her belly. "I always wondered a little about why I still hadn't decided on a name on April 29th. I mean, I've had plenty of time. But now that I think about it…it seems like I was rather making a really important decision and it was more than just whether to name the baby John or Sam."

"What decision could that be?" Max looked up with interest.

"I have no idea," Theresa sighed. "Oh Jerry, could you move all the gifts from the baby shower to the basement?"

"Sure, but did we ever decide where exactly the baby is going to sleep?"

"Well Justin going to graduate soon and move out. The baby will have his room once he leaves. In the mean time, the baby will just stay in our room."

"Alright," Jerry got up and grabbed a few gifts. "Anything else I can get you, Theresa? Some tea, maybe?"

And there he goes again, acting abnormally considerate. Theresa just shook her head and watched her husband carry down the baby gifts after being told only once and never complaining the entire way down. Yes, she shouldn't be complaining that her husband is now Mr. Perfect. But she can't shake the feeling that something's still wrong.

* * *

[March 14, 2010]

Jerry watched his two eldest children sit side by side in the lair while Justin read aloud from an old spell-book and Alex tried her best to focus and listen. Even a week and a half after they told him, he's still not exactly comfortable seeing the two of them together. Any other person would have glanced at the two and passed them off as friends or siblings. Jerry himself has been overlooking the fact for months.

It's like when you get the words to a song wrong due to a singer's lack of enunciation or whatnot. But when you finally learn the real lyrics, every time you hear the song, you wonder how you could have mistaken it when it was so obvious.

They're sitting not too close, yet close enough. Alex has her legs curled up beside her, her knees angled towards Justin. Justin had the book on his lap, leaning ever so slightly towards her as he read. She would occasionally move to read a line that he pointed out and when she did so, her head was practically on his shoulder. They didn't act like lovebirds, at least not in his presence. But there was a chemistry there, clear as day, found if you look closely at the spark in their eyes when they're together.

And who was Jerry kidding? He really has been overlooking the fact for years.

Even if they claim they've only developed these feelings after the flashforward five months ago, Jerry knows that's not true. In retrospect, Alex and Justin always connected better than they did with Max. They treated Max well, of course, teasing him and helping him and loving him at the end of each day. But that's what siblings should do. Justin and Alex fought each other harder, got into tougher situations, and it made sense that in the end, their love was stronger too. It's destiny.

It's wrong. Jerry knows now that this is what he was talking to Tina about in his flashforward. In a way, he's been expecting something bad to happen. He just never expected it to be like this. But they're his children after all, so he will support them in whatever they decide to do.

The wizard mail came and Max, who was working on a spell in the side of the room, went to sort through the envelopes. "Hey, here's a letter from Madame Boswell," he said.

Alex and Justin both looked up and walked over, indicating they all knew of this Madame Boswell. "She's the fortune teller that we went to see," Justin explained to Jerry.

Alex opened the letter and a female voice spoke from the parchment. "Alex and Justin, please come by my office. I have found one last bit of important information."

Madame Boswell seemed quite urgent, so the four Russos all headed through the portal.

"Are you sure this woman can be trusted?" Jerry asked, hurrying after his children. "The whole fate explanation seemed sketchy."

"But you have to admit it's logical," Alex pointed out. "And it's much easier to blame the Tina person. That way it's all her fault and we don't have to deal with it since we won't ever run into her."

Max gave Jerry a knowing look and he sighed. Perhaps it wasn't fair that the kids confided in Jerry and he didn't do the same. But how could he confess that on April 29th, he will be with Tina, the very same ex-girlfriend of his who should never have broken up with him in the first place?

* * *

They arrived at the office soon enough.

Madame Boswell was shocked to see Jerry there as well but invited them all inside. Immediately, Madame Boswell pulled out a thick volume and got right to the point. "Everyone is born with a prophecy," she explained. "Most of the time, it's a boring prophecy. It just states who the person is going to marry, how many children the person will have, and maybe some accomplishment the person will do. These prophecies are so vague that destiny almost always gets its way and makes them all come true. The exception being you guys."

She opened the book—it was the magical one that showed the moving pictures like last time they were here. She spoke the word "Russo" and the pages of the book flipped until the book settled on a certain blank page. Words in black ink started to appear on the page.

"As you already know, Theresa's prophecy stated she would marry Jack and they would have a daughter; Jerry's prophecy stated he would marry Tina and have two sons. But there's more." Madame Boswell pointed to the page. "The daughter of Theresa and the older son of Jerry are destined to fall in love, get married, and have a son."

Four sets of jaws dropped open.

"But we can't," Justin argued. "The genetic pool would be too similar. It would be too risky…"

Madame Boswell just shook her head. "Theresa is pregnant, is she not? Now think about this: nowhere in the prophecy does destiny say Theresa or Jerry will have another kid."

"So what does that mean?" Jerry asked. "That we break the prophecy?"

"No, just that destiny is trying hard to fix the mistake," Madame Boswell said. "Not only did it make Alex and Justin siblings, but I'm afraid it made their future son their brother too."

The Russo's stared in utter disbelief. "Wait. You're telling us that Mom is pregnant with our son?" Alex exclaimed. "That's just outrageous."

"That cannot be," Jerry said. "That's really twisted."

"It just doesn't make sense!" Justin shouted. "How would making our son into our brother solve any of this? What is destiny trying to do?"

Madame Boswell only closed her book signaling the end of the session. "I'm sorry. But the truth isn't always pretty. You don't have to believe me. I only thought it fair to let you know."

* * *

[March 29, 2010]

Alex, Justin, and Max were in the living room doing homework while Jerry was serving the last of the customers downstairs and Theresa was resting upstairs.

Ever since the trip to Madame Boswell's no one has mentioned the odd twist of events, maybe because no one wants to believe it. How could Alex and Justin accept that inside their mother's growing belly is a child fated to be _their _son? Even if they are sick enough to view their sibling as a lover, they can't wrap their mind around the fact that their new sibling is their child. It doesn't work like that.

In the midst of a vocabulary assignment, Alex just broke down sobbing. Her brothers were so shocked at this anomaly that they didn't know what to do at first. Teary-eyed, she turned to Justin who opened his arms for her.

"What's wrong with her?" Max mouthed to Justin.

"I don't know," Justin mouthed back, over Alex's head. He rubbed her back in an attempt to soothe her.

After she had calmed down a little, Justin and Max looked at her expectantly waiting for an explanation to her sudden outburst. "I'm sorry," she whispered, wiping her tears with a tissue, "I…I just…"

"It's okay," Justin said, "you can tell us."

"I can't take it anymore," she cried. "I can't pretend I'm strong anymore. I can't act like I don't care when I really do. I wish I could be with you, Justin, just like the stupid prophecy said. I wish we can get married and start a family. I wish that baby _is _our kid. And that scares me. Right now, I just wish more than anything that life could go back to normal. I want to be able to do homework with my two brothers and laugh and tease each other and get into trouble over nothing and hug it all out in the end. Back when I didn't fall in love with my brother, back when I didn't know about our screwed up fate, back when I didn't know the story behind the baby. Back then, life was…comfortable."

Here is a defiant girl torn up inside, growing more and more on the verge of tears until today, when all worries overflowed. Her heart wants one thing, her mind tells her it's the other thing, her intuition leads her to another altogether.

"So you really want to use the Lover's Regret Spell?" Justin asked, a slight ache evident in his voice.

She nodded.

And then, Max simply had enough. "All you two ever do these days is whine and complain!" he shouted. "You're always super emotional with sad faces. It's like all the fun and joy has been sucked out of you lately."

"Well I'm sorry our situation is horrible," Alex replied bitterly.

"You think you're the only ones who are having a hard time? Yeah, life sucks. But I'm tired of you guys moping about it all the time. You've become obsessed with your flashforward, trying really hard to find a solution to a problem you don't exactly want to fix. You live with your minds focused on April 29th."

"That's not true," Justin defended. Honestly, he was shocked at Max's outburst as well. What was it with everyone and breaking down today?

"It is so true. And then there's Mom. All she does is either talk about the baby or actually talk to the baby. It's always about that stupid baby. And Dad…" he paused for a second, debating over whether or not he should tell his siblings about their dad's secret, but he was so mad he figured why not. "…Dad lied, you know. About his flashforward. He wasn't at some Starbucks buying coffee. He wasn't at the hospital with Mom and me because Mom had kicked him out of the house."

Justin and Alex stared in surprise. Were they so self-absorbed the past few months that they didn't see any of these signs?

Max continued, "Dad is freaking out. He knows he obviously did something wrong to get Mom angry, but he doesn't know what that is. He's been trying so hard to do everything perfect to change the flashforward. Only now that we told him about the whole fate thing, Dad has become obsessed with all the mistakes in the past. Oh, and he was with Tina Goldberg in his flashforward. They were just talking, but still, it got Dad reminiscing about the past. And after you told him about what Madame Boswell said, it only got worse. I caught him looking at Tina's picture the other day. He's so caught up in what could have been.

"But what about me?" Max asked finally. "You two are stuck in the future, Mom is stuck in the present and Dad is stuck in the past. Where does that leave me? Did you realize that not one of you has bothered to ask me about my flashforward in all this time?"

"Of course we did," Alex said. "You were with Mom."

"Well then did you ever consider maybe there was a little more to it?"

_Max was walking across a hallway in and opened a brown door. Inside, his mother laid on the bed, fatigued and exhausted._

"_Hey Mom, how are you?" he asked._

"_I'm great."_

"_The nurse is almost here," he said. A few seconds later, two nurses in teal scrubs walked into the room, one pushing the crib, one carrying the newborn baby._

"_Here you are, Mrs. Russo," the nurse said cheerily. "Congratulations on your new baby boy!"_

"_He's so precious," Theresa whispered in awe. Max stood back are watched his mother coo over the baby. This was what he had expected all along. That baby was going to steal all the attention and Max would be left ignored. He ventured over and peered at the baby curiously._

"_Isn't he cute, Max?" she asked._

"_I guess." He shrugged but smiled anyways. Sure, he was cute, but all babies were. Personally, Max couldn't see anything unique about his new baby brother, he looked just like any other baby he's seen before: small, red, and slightly wrinkly. _

_He kissed his mother on the forehead and sat down at the armchair. _

"_So what's his name?" one of the nurses asked. _

_He stared anxiously waiting her reply. The minutes and seconds ticked away as Theresa had an internal debate. Max's heart sped up as he begged her to make the right choice. "Please," he muttered, too quiet for anyone else to hear. He inhaled and held his breath._

"_Mrs. Russo? I need a name to go on the birth certificate."_

"_Could you wait for a little bit? What time is it?"_

"_10:02."_

"_Can you come back in fifteen, twenty minutes, please?"_

"_Um, sure…but what about the baby's name?"_

"_I don't know yet."_

_Max let go of his breath and sighed in relief. Smiling like all his cares were taken off his shoulders at last, he felt so elated he could dance in that hospital room. Quickly taking out his phone, he clicked on 'New Message' and typed '_mom said yes!_' and sent it to Alex._

Justin and Alex sat dumbfounded at everything Max had told them. Right under their noses, their little not-so-clueless brother had become the bearer of secrets, but they were too preoccupied to notice. Never has Max seemed more grown up.

"Wait, why would you send a text that said 'mom said yes' when clearly she didn't agree to anything?" Justin asked. "She only told the nurses that she didn't have a name yet."

"I think it's like a hidden message or something, or maybe it was implied," Max said. "I'm not completely sure. I guess I won't find out until that day. But in my flashforward, I felt really nervous watching Mom ponder over a name and when she said she didn't know, I felt relieved. It was like I wanted her to say she didn't know."

"That's weird. What do you think that means?" Alex asked.

Max looked between his two siblings, trying to decide if he should say it or not. "Alex, Justin, please don't use the Lover's Regret Spell."

"What? We're talking about Mom, don't change the subject."

"No," Max shook his head. "I mean, don't do it because I think I know of a better solution. You know how you sometimes joke about running away? Well, what if you just wait a little while until after you both graduate college. You can both move to some faraway city where no one knows you and you can find jobs there and live as a married couple. And it would be like running away, only much more responsible. That's what destiny planned, right?"

"But what about Mom and Dad?" Alex asked.

"Dad is cool with it already. He's not exactly cheering you on, but he's okay with you two being together. As for Mom, well, she's going to yes, remember?"

"Is that what you think the text is about?"

"Maybe. Either way, she's agreeing to something."

It's not the grandest of plans. But in perspective, it does sound more appealing than possibly losing your memory and forgetting everything. The three Russo children sat side by side in the living room, trying not to get their hopes up and failing at it.

One month left.

* * *

**Did Max's "answer" meet your expectations? But admit it, none of you saw the baby thing coming before this chapter. Unless you're psychic. Or Madame Boswell.**

**I think there's only two chapters left, maybe three. I surprisingly had A LOT of spare time today, so I might actually have time to write this weekend since I don't have that much homework. Anyway, you guys did it. This story broke 100 reviews after five chapters! Now, only two (or three) chapters left...we can't break 200 reviews in that time. Can we? That is my challenge to you. Thanks for reading, love you.**


	7. April I

**Oh look, I'm not dead :) Thanks for all the reviews urging me to update. I love you guys.**

[April 3, 2010]

Alex opened the door to her parents' room and handed her mom the glass of water she had asked for. Theresa was now eight months pregnant and she lay on the bed with her giant belly creating a mountain under the cover. The doctor had said that due to Theresa's age and her work which consisted of walking around the restaurant for hours, it was preferred that Theresa rested more.

"Thank you, Alex," Theresa said, taking a drink of the water. She looked down at it in dismay. "Honey, you know I like crushed ice, not cubed."

Alex raised an eyebrow incredulously. _Yeah right._

Theresa laughed. "It's kind of nice to know that you haven't changed. Your dad has been strange these days, heeding my every command. I guess I got used to it."

"Well don't expect me to do anything," Alex said with a smile. "I went downstairs to get you water. That's already more good deeds than I do on an average day."

Right as Theresa set the glass on the bedside table, she lurched forward and clutched her belly. "Ooh!"

"Are you okay?" Alex rushed forward and panicked. "Is it the baby? Should I call Dad?"

Putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder, Theresa shook her head. "It's alright. The baby is just kicking. Do you want to see?"

Alex only nodded and her mom pulled back the covers, lifting her shirt slightly to reveal her giant belly. She gently put her hand on her mom's stomach and on cue, the baby kicked right into her hand. It shocked Alex so she quickly jumped back.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Theresa smiled.

Knowing what to expect now, Alex stepped back and put her hand on Theresa's belly again. Without any hesitation, the baby kicked twice into her hand. It was like he knew where Alex was, like he knew who she was.

_That's my son_, Alex thought. The thought was strange and sick and slightly demented, but Alex can't help the smile on her face. Could things really resolve in the end? Could Alex really get to treat her new brother as the son she'll never conceive on her own? Could there really be a happy ending in view?

_She said yes_. On April 29th, Theresa Russo will agree to something. The answer was yes, but Alex raked her mind for what could possibly be the question. She pleaded and prayed that Theresa is saying yes, it's okay for Justin and Alex to be together. Yet deep inside, she kept the flicker of hope that Theresa is saying yes, she can have the baby.

All she has to do was ask.

"Mom?"

"Yeah?"

She looked at her mom, fatigued by the pregnancy, anticipating the arrival of the baby, and oh so oblivious to everything. And it came down to this: is ignorance truly bliss? Theresa has the right to know all the secrets in this house, but is she better off in the dark?

Alex sighed and retreated to the door. "Never mind."

* * *

[April 9, 2010]

Justin read and reread and rerereread the first line of the letter. Perhaps some part of his brain was processing the words, but that part was quite miniscule. The Times New Roman font on beige stationery got all jumbled as his vision blurred from not blinking.

_Congratulations! I am very pleased to inform you of your acceptance to Harvard University as a freshman for Fall 2010…_

Harvard. _Harvard_. He got accepted to Har-frickin-vard.

"Oh my god," he muttered at first. When the fact finally set in, he dropped the letter and screamed, "YEESSSS!"

Attracted by the loud noise, the whole family walked into the kitchen where Justin was currently doing a little dance filled with "oh yeah"s. Alex noticed the dropped letter and went to pick it up. Her eyes widened as she read it, then quickly passed it to her parents.

"You got into Harvard?" Jerry cried.

"I got into Harvard!" Justin replied. Soon, both father and son were dancing in the kitchen.

"I'm so proud of you, Justin!" Theresa said. "Congratulations. We always knew you could do it."

The celebration went on for a while when it was decided that this great news called for a trip to the pizzeria across the street and the Russos set out down the stairs. In high spirits, they practically danced into the street, with Jerry bragging to passing strangers that his son was going to Harvard, and arrived at the pizzeria with matching smiles.

Well, except for Alex.

Justin held the door open for Theresa, Jerry, and Max, and that's when he noticed Alex walking a few steps behind them all with a noticeable frown on her face. "Alex?"

She looked up and immediately smiled. But he saw right through it.

"What's wrong?"

"What are you talking about? Nothing's wrong. You got into the nerd-tastic school of your dreams." She tried to walk through the door into the restaurant, but Justin stretched out his arm to stop her and pulled her aside.

"Seriously, Alex, what's the matter?"

She tried to defend that nothing was the matter, but one stern look from Justin and she scowled and hung her head. "Okay, okay, so I'm a little disappointed. That's all."

"Why would you be disappointed?"

"I'm disappointed in myself because…" her voice got lower and lower until it became inaudible mumbling.

"What?"

"I said I'm disappointed in myself because I actually thought we could be a family, okay? I was stupid enough to actually hope that maybe we could raise that son of ours. Together. You know, with you as the dad and me as the mom and it's stupid, I know. It's nothing."

Her words triggered a series of emotions from within him. She had thought about a future with him. She wanted to be with him. Even though she was scared out of her mind (though she hid it well), she was willing to risk it so they could be together. "No," he said, "that's not stupid."

"Then how exactly will we be a family if you're off in Harvard studying to be a doctor and I'm still in high school trying to not fail my senior year?"

She had a good point.

"Just forget it," she said, taking his hand and pulling him towards the pizzeria where their family was waiting. "We're here to celebrate you, Mr. I'm-so-smart-I-made-it-to-Harvard-bigshot-man."

But he didn't forget it. Her little remark attached itself to his brain and clung on.

* * *

[April 12, 2010]

Life was a complicated mess as it was. Now you add the whole Harvard dilemma and it was basically a tornado of conflicting hearts.

Justin only ever knew two things. Studying for school and studying for magic. The wizard competition won't be for a long time now, thanks to his new brother/son, but all his hard work in school was finally paying off. Harvard has been his dream school for so long. Any other day, he would have sent the confirmation letter back right away saying yes, _of course _he'll go to Harvard.

But it wasn't any other day. Life was no longer a matter of getting to the finish line because frankly, he didn't know which finish line he was heading for. Does he leave Alex and the baby and everything they have behind to pursue his dream? Or does he stay with the girl he loves and let destiny play out?

* * *

Alex picked up the week's school newspaper, _The Tribeca Tribune_, that fell out of her backpack and onto the ground. It had some scoop and the sophomore class's favorite genre of music, what Mr. Larritate's favorite ice cream flavor is, and a nice article about how Justin Russo will be the graduating class of 2010's valedictorian. The front page had a picture of him sitting cross-legged on the bench by the lockers with the same pose and goofy smile that all the previous valedictorians had in their pictures for the paper. She resisted the urge to draw a mustache on his face and flipped to the third page where the article continued.

_Tribeca Tribune: What is your dream career, Justin?  
Justin: Well, I haven't made my decision yet, but I'm considering pre-med.  
TT: Oh, a doctor. Doesn't that take a long time in college?  
Justin: Yeah, it would take the regular four years of college and then another four years of medical school. Then you have to work in hospitals to train.  
TT: That sounds like a lot of work. But I'm sure you'd be a great doctor. And congratulations on making Harvard.  
Justin: Thanks.  
TT: But are you ready for college? The senior class this year seems evenly split. There are those who are eager to leave for college and finally get out of here, but there are also those who wish they could stay in high school.  
Justin: Um, I mean there is an element of both for most people, I think. College is a thrilling thing, it's what we've been looking forward to our whole lives.  
TT: So you're eager to leave?  
Justin: Yes, but at the same time, I'm going to miss my family. I'm a teenage guy, I don't know how to take care of myself and be on my own!  
TT: Amen to that.  
Justin: This year in particular, I've grown closer to my family. And I don't know. It's like…it's like when you finally start to get along with your parents and your siblings, it's time to leave for college.  
_

Alex folded the newspaper back and sat down on her bed. It's not fair, really. Justin has wanted this forever. He's always been eons ahead in math and science, always gets good grades, always been the pride of the family. He deserves this. And it's not fair that some flashforward comes along and ruins everything.

Screw destiny for corrupting their brother-sister relationship. Screw destiny for giving them a _child _they could never explain. Screw destiny for making them have to choose.

* * *

[April 17, 2010]

Max walked into Justin's room where the older brother sat typing on his laptop.

"So I was thinking," Max began, "once you move out to college, maybe I could get your room and then the baby could get my room. Your room is bigger. And probably doesn't have toxic spills."

Justin gave him a glance, then went back to typing.

"When were you planning on moving out?" Max asked. "I know school doesn't start until September, but I didn't know if maybe you would move earlier or something."

Justin sighed and turned around to face him. "I don't know, Max."

"Oh. Well that's fine. No rush. Move out whenever you feel like it. Just as long as I get your room."

"No, I mean, I don't know if I _will _move out."

"Huh?"

"I still haven't decided if I want to go to Harvard or not."

Max stared at Justin with disbelief. "Why?"

"NYU offered me a full scholarship. And it's closer to home," Justin shrugged.

"I may not know a lot of colleges, but I'm sure Harvard ranks above NYU."

Justin replied in a soft voice, "I can't leave Alex. Or the baby."

"The baby isn't your responsibility. You don't have to take care of him. I mean, he's our baby brother."

"But you and I both know he's more than that."

Max sighed and patted his brother's shoulder. "Don't worry. With Mom, Dad, Alex, and me, the baby will not be uncared for. You can go to college."

Justin smiled. "I know. Thanks, Max. It just doesn't feel right leaving at a time like this. That's all."

* * *

[April 21, 2010]

Theresa groaned as she got up from bed and wobbled down the hall. Her feet were swollen, her belly was huge, and she was in that screw-the-world phase of the pregnancy. Cranky, tired, and looking forward to the day the little sucker finally gets out of her, she descended the stairs was some difficulty. She had made it past about five steps when she had to sit down and rest. It was quite pathetic, really, and she was laughing at herself as she plopped down on the metal stair step to catch her breath.

That's when she realized there was a conversation going on in the living room beneath her. It seems lately that every time she enters the room, her family jumps and abruptly changes the subject. And she's tried and tried to overlook it, because surely it is nothing, but the suspicion just keeps growing and growing. Jerry's flawless behavior, Alex and Justin getting along, Max being responsible…it's like she didn't know her family anymore.

"It's almost the big day," Max said.

"April 29, 2010," Justin mused. "It seemed so far away then, but here it is, right around the corner."

"We made it this far," Alex commented.

Theresa leaned forward. What were they talking about? Her family below continued their conversation, unaware of her eavesdropping.

"But can we really just keep ignoring everything?" Justin asked. "I mean, sooner or later, we'll have to deal with it."

"I vote later," Alex said.

Theresa carefully scooted forward and lowered herself onto the next step so she could peer through the railing at the scene beneath her. Alex, Justin, and Max sat on the couch while Jerry sat on the armchair, a bowl of untouched grapes sitting before them.

Jerry sighed. He looked older beyond his years. What could possibly be stressing him out so much? "Unfortunately," he said, "I think it already _is _later."

The four of them looked amongst each other. Theresa was hit with that pang of being left out, excluded from her own family.

"We tell Mom?" Max finally asked, after a moment of silence.

Justin looked at Alex and put his arm around her (which was odd). "Yeah. We tell Mom."

_Tell her what?_

Alex opened her mouth again, probably attempting to use humor to soften the tension, but then gave up and rested her head on Justin's shoulder (again, very odd). Then the weirdest thing of all, Justin bent down and kissed her forehead. The last time Theresa saw her eldest two children so close and affectionate without gagging faces was back when they were kids, running around the substation, when Justin's best friend was his sister and Alex's best friend was her brother.

She decided to make her presence known and stood from her spot on the stairs. She made her way down and watched Justin and Alex spring apart. Jerry sat up straight and a big smile got pasted on his face.

"Hey guys," she greeted, "what's going on?"

"Nothing," they all said simultaneously.

The same doubts that have been heating up for months were now brought to a boil. All the signs were screaming at her and she couldn't overlook it any longer. If she was honest, it started before the secretive family meetings, before the intimate new relationship between Alex and Justin, before the holiday cruise, before all of Jerry's kind acts. No, the suspicions began October 6 when she asked what their flashforwards were and none of them answered.

* * *

Justin found Alex standing alone on the terrace in her pajamas late that night. She had bags under her eyes and she lost that rosy glow that usually accompanied her. It looked like she's been doing a lot of late-night contemplating. He walked up next to her, leaning against the railing and gazing at the stars.

"I'm scared," she whispered. "I'm not ready to be a mom."

"I know you're not, Alex," he replied.

"So what do we do? We can't just pretend nothing has changed because everything has changed. We need to tell Mom. About us. About the baby."

"I know."

"It's going to be okay. Somehow, things will work out. Max saw it in his vision. Destiny, or whatever, knows what it's doing. It's going to be just fine."

"I know it is."

"Seven more days." She shuddered, and not from the cold, but from time catching up on her. From realizing these were the final days and it was now or never.

"I know it is, Alex," he said, wrapping his arms around her from behind and kissing her neck. "I know."

* * *

[April 22, 2010]

Incest.

Nothing they said could lessen the severity of what they were explaining. It was a crime. They could blame destiny and fate and the universe, but the damage has already been done. The look of horror on Theresa's face, then disappointment, then finally disgust. Their mom wasn't going to understand.

"No," Theresa said softly after Alex and Justin told her everything. "No."

"It's okay, Mom." Alex approached her but Theresa backed away. "Mom?"

"No. This can't be happening," Theresa said. "Not my son. Not my daughter. No, there must be a mistake."

"I'm sorry, Mom but—" Justin started.

"You're sick. That's it," Theresa said. "You're both sick but it's fine. We'll take you to see some doctors, go to some therapy, and everything will be back to normal. This is just a phase. It's just the effects of the blackout, yeah, that's what it is. Don't worry, this whole thing will blow over soon."

"No, Mom, just listen!" Alex interrupted. "We're not mental. We're just…just caught up in destiny."

"This is real. We're meant to be. In a million other worlds, Alex and I are not related and we're together," Justin explained. Forever and ever, so long that he used 'ever' twice.

Theresa shook her head incredulously. "But we're in _this _world. And you _are _related. And you_ can't _be together."

Alex began shaking and she felt that stinging at the bridge of her nose, the feeling she gets whenever she is about to cry. She gulped and shrank back. "But the baby…"

Theresa's eyes widened as her hand went over her protruding belling instinctively. "What about the baby?"

"That's…that's…" Alex couldn't say it. She searched her entire soul for the courage to say it and she couldn't.

"That's our baby," Justin finished for her.

"_WHAT?_" Theresa cried. "You two are insane. How can this be your child? He's your baby brother. He's related to you just like you are related to each other. He's your _brother_."

Justin tried to explain the whole situation that Madame Boswell described, but Theresa wouldn't listen. Alex stepped behind Justin, as if he could shield their mother's hurtful words. Why didn't she accept them?

"Come on, Mom," Max stepped up now. "Don't get angry."

"So Max, you knew all along?" Theresa asked.

"Well not all along," Max answered, "I only knew since, like, January?"

"Yeah, it was January," Justin agreed casually.

"And you didn't bother letting your own mother into the loop?" Theresa accused. "We're family. We're supposed to trust each other. I'm not only angry at you for your…your…your relationship. I'm mostly angry at you for not telling me, for keeping it a secret from me for so long. If you would have told me the truth from the beginning—"

"Then what? You would have been cool with this?" Alex asked. "No, Mom, you would still have called us crazy and psycho and insane. Do you think we don't know what we've gotten ourselves into? We both tried to fight it for months because we understood that it was wrong. We didn't tell you because we were afraid."

"Then why are you telling me now?"

"Because," Justin said, "things have gotten way out of hand. It's become bigger than all of us. And we can't get out of this mess without your help."

Theresa vehemently shook her head, failing to comprehend, refusing to comprehend. "Can you believe this Jerry?" she asked. But when she looked over at her husband, the look on his face betrayed everything. "You…you knew too. Of course you did."

"Theresa, I—" Jerry began.

"And you were okay with it?" Theresa shouted. "You didn't stop them or try to reason with them? You encouraged them?"

"They're our kids! And I'll support them. Because if they love each other—"

"No." Theresa angry put her hands up to stop the conversation. She took a few breaths to calm herself. The baby was kicking violently inside her, like he could sense the tension outside. Then she remembered something. "Who are you and what have you done to my husband? And what made you put on the nice act? _What are you trying to hide?_"

All the secrets were unfolding now. The dam was broken and nothing could stop the truth now.

"In my flashforward," Jerry explained, "I was sitting at a café table with Tina. And I was telling her how I messed up and how I got into an argument with you and how I was kicked out of the house. How I wasn't even allowed to see our new son. Although, I guess it's not really _our _son anymore, is it?"

"Tina? Tina Goldberg? In your flashforward you were with her?" Theresa laughed shakily.

"I was just talking to her!" Jerry argued. "And that's why I've trying to kind to your all these months. Because I was afraid of this. I was afraid of messing up."

Theresa only shook her head. "But don't you see? That _was_ the mistake. You lied to me. All of you lied to me. Instead of just confessing the truth so we could all work through it as a family, you schemed behind my back. Well, I'm tired of being last to know."

"Please, Theresa," Jerry said. "Please don't let this tear our family apart."

"I think it already has."

The tears Alex desperately tried to hold back rolled down her cheeks. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. The happily ever after is nowhere in sight. Justin wrapped an arm around her comfortingly.

"Theresa, the kids—" Jerry begged helplessly.

"You know what, why don't you leave?" she said, pointing at the door. "Why don't you go off with Tina?"

"Nothing happened between me and Tina!" he cried. "We were just talking. In fact, April 29th will be the first time I see her in years. Come on, Theresa. It doesn't have to be like this. It doesn't have to be like the flashforward. We can change the future."

"No. I can't. All I know is that on April 29th, I will be having this baby and Max will be the only one who is there. You said it yourself, Jerry, in your flashforward, you were kicked out of the house. That means you must have committed some wrong. Maybe not yet, but you will. And I can't wait for that to happen. There are enough things wrong with this family as it is. So please, just pack and leave."

"Mom, are you really making Dad leave for something he hasn't done yet?" Max asked. "Just because that's what happened in the flashforward?"

Theresa blinked, her eyes beginning to pool with tears. "I'm not taking the risk. I'm sorry." She turned towards her children and noticed Justin with his arms around Alex. The scene was so endearing yet so wrong. She walked over and pulled Alex from his grasp. "And you, go with your father," she told Justin.

"What?" they all cried. Four pairs of eyes stared at her.

"This is all too much to take in," Theresa said. "I need time, alone, to think. I…I'm not making any decisions right now. I'm not kicking you two out permanently. I don't want to lose this family either. Give me a couple of days."

"But Mom," Alex cried, running back to Justin and holding onto his hand, as if that would keep him here.

Theresa watched Alex cling onto her brother. It completely wrenched out her heartstrings. She closed her eyes. How did it ever come to this? How did Jerry let this happen?

"No, no, we'll go," Jerry sighed. "We will leave."

"Dad!" Alex looked around frantically at her family. They were all slipping away right before her eyes and she couldn't do anything about it.

"Justin," Jerry said. He put his hand on his son's shoulder. He nodded and pulled out his wand, flicking it in the air once and two suitcases appeared at their feet.

Alex was near hysterical now. When things got out of her control, she started to lose control of herself as well. "No, stay. Please stay."

With pained eyes, Justin gave her hand a squeeze. "It's for the best. We'll wait for Mom to come to her senses. It's going to be okay, remember? This is how things were in the flashforward. Everything will be fine," he whispered to her.

"But you're leaving!" she shouted. "How can things work out if you're gone? This wasn't part of the plan; you weren't supposed to leave with Dad too!"

"Alex." Justin and Max tried to calm her but the sobs kept coming.

Theresa opened the door as Jerry picked up his bag. "Nothing is going on with Tina and I. Nothing was going on and nothing ever will go on. This is all a big misunderstanding," he said.

She smiled weakly. "I really want to believe you."

"Call me when you want to talk, okay?"

"Yeah."

With one last nod, Jerry walked out the door. Justin pulled his hand out of Alex's death grip while Max held her back and then Justin was gone too.

The door shut with a click.

The flashforwards were all falling into place, piece by piece.

Theresa brought Alex over to the couch and mother and daughter embraced. "I'm so sorry, Alex," Theresa said. "So sorry."

"All those years you complained for Justin and me to get along. Well, I love him now. Aren't you happy?"

The two shared a weak laugh. Tucking Alex's hair behind her ear, Theresa smiled at her daughter. "You're a strong girl, Alex. And I know you'll make it through whatever life throws at you and whatever's coming next. Just give me some time to think things through, okay?"

Alex nodded and they stayed, tear-stained and tired, on the couch. "Mom, are you okay?" she asked when she noticed Theresa holding her stomach.

"It's the baby. He's been kicking relentlessly this whole time."

Carefully, Alex rested her hand on Theresa's belly. _It's okay, _she was saying, _I'm still here_. At her simple touch, the baby stopped kicking.

* * *

**Sorry, but I had to split the April chapter into two chapters. Part two coming soon, no two month wait, I promise!**

**So Jerry left. And Justin went with him. None of you saw that coming. Even I didn't see that coming. What do you think? With one, maybe two chapters left, how is this story going to resolve? You'll have to stick around and see :) And thanks again for all the support. 99 alerts, like wow. 135 reviews like WOW. Maybe we can get to 200... [insert subtle hint that you should review here] OH, by the way, I started writing this chapter a month ago, then forgot, then began writing the chapter again about a week ago. So now I have two chapter beginners. The April Fool's beginning didn't make it into this chapter, but if you want, I can send it to you. That scene is purely jalex cuteness.**

**Review! And tell me if you want the April Fool's scene :D**


	8. April II

**(This chapter is like really long.) Supermegafoxyawesomehot thanks to Baku babe for editing and coming up with ideas and researching baby names. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Here's the chapter you've all been waiting for. **

* * *

[April 24, 2010]

Lover's Regret Spell  
_Sincere heart, forgive my mistake.  
Erase all my love for _._

Justin really, really, really does not want to use this spell. But there comes a point when a lack of want can be overridden by a necessity. When Justin and his dad are living in Room 426 of the Marriott Hotel two blocks away from home, just days before the dreaded April 29th, it's becoming apparent that they've reached that point.

* * *

"Alex, can you do the dishes?" Theresa called out. "I need to rest."

"What? But it's Justin's turn!" Alex automatically cringed as his name accidentally flew out of her mouth. But just a second later, the grimace was gone and she trudged to the sink to wash the dishes.

"Oh, Alex." Theresa walked over and gave her daughter a side-hug. "We'll get through this, alright?"

"Yeah. I know."

The past two days, Alex showed barely any signs of change. She was still her sarcastic self, doing her best to sneak magic in her daily life and to get out of doing anything. The remarks and eye-rolls never ceased, and she went to school and came back home as if this was still a house of five instead of three. She acts like nothing is wrong, like nothing has changed. Like she isn't upset.

But everything is wrong, everything has changed, and Alex is upset. She just _pretends _like she's fine because that's what she always does. And over the years, she's gotten so good at pretending that others can hardly tell the difference. Theresa will always know, though. A mother always knows. Just seeing Alex's face fall after she said Justin's name—even if it was only for a second—told Theresa that Alex was absolutely devastated.

"Come on, Mom." Max wrapped one arm around his mother and helped her upstairs. Theresa took one last look back at Alex at the sink. Alex used her arm to wipe some soap foam off her cheek. But maybe she was wiping some tears too.

"Did I do the right thing, Max?" Theresa asked. "Making your dad and your brother leave?"

Max shrugged. "Well, that's how it was in the flashforwards."

All flashforwards are coming true; scientists from around the world have all agreed. So if the future had Jerry out of the house, shouldn't that justify her decision to kick him out? _Because it was in the flashforward._ Only now, Theresa was starting to think that was a poor reason for anything.

* * *

[April 25, 2010]

In which Alex told Harper everything.

And Harper didn't wrinkle her nose in disgust, didn't turn away, and didn't tell Alex that she's sick. Harper just hugged Alex and told her, "It's okay."

* * *

[April 26, 2010]

"Excuse me, is Jerry Russo here?"

"No, he's not," Theresa replied, not looking up from her spot at the cash register where she sat organizing the bills.

"Oh. Well could you tell him I stopped by?"

"Sure, what's your n—" Theresa stopped abruptly as she looked up. Standing in front of her was a woman about the same age as her, with long blonde hair, perfect teeth, and a tiny smile. Theresa felt like she was going to throw up.

"I'm Tina Goldberg," the woman said. "I'm an old friend."

"Yeah," Theresa managed to whisper back.

Tina smiled, turned on her heels, and walked out of the restaurant. The second the door shut behind her, Alex and Max rushed out from the kitchen to their mother. "Was that…?" Max asked.

Theresa nodded. The only things faster than her racing heart were her racing thoughts. Tina was here. Why? Well, obviously to see Jerry, but Theresa didn't want to believe it. He said he hasn't been meeting her, he said April 29th would be the first time he saw her, and he said it was a big misunderstanding. But here was Tina, strutting her way into the substation!

Why would Jerry lie to her?

With no other choice, she turned to Alex. "Call your father...and tell him I never want to see him again."

* * *

[April 27, 2010]

It was inevitable that dinner would always be awkward. There were those two empty chairs, constantly reminding them that this family was on the verge of being permanently broken. The only noise came from the forks scraping plates or the occasional car honk from the streets below.

Max finally cleared his throat to break the silence. "About the baby."

"What?" Theresa and Alex looked up.

"The baby," he said again, "what's going to happen to the baby?"

"Max, I don't want to talk about that right now." Theresa sighed.

"But we have to talk about it," Max argued. "I'm only bringing it up because I know Alex won't."

Alex looked down at her plate, but gave Max's knee a pat. _Thank you_.

"I'll raise the baby like I raised my three children," Theresa answered.

"But it's…" Alex whispered softly. "But it's my baby."

Theresa shut her eyes at those words. Life was already so complicated; she just wanted to forget this little obstacle. "What do you want me to do?" she asked. "Give the baby to you? Let you and Justin run away and pretend that you're an ordinary couple? Because you're not, Alex. You're not. You don't know how to raise a kid. You're too young. And you can't be with Justin. If a brother and a sister are living together, people will notice and they will start asking questions."

Alex lowered her head again. "I know."

"I just want you two to be happy. You deserve that," Theresa said. "But you and Justin can't have some happy ending together. Not when the world is against you."

Alex remained silent for a long time and it isn't until dinner is almost finished did she speak again. "It would help if _you_ weren't against me."

"Hmm?" Theresa asked, not catching what Alex just said.

"Maybe the world is against Justin and me," Alex said, louder this time. "But it would help if our own mother wasn't against us too."

* * *

[April 28, 2010]

"You really want to do it?" Justin asked.

Alex clutched onto the telephone receiver, whispering urgently. "Yes."

"You don't sound very certain to me."

"We have to, Justin."

"But if we do the spell, what if I really do forget about you? What if…what if I lose you?"

"Mom and dad are about to get a divorce, in case you haven't noticed. And then she'll force us to go to therapy. And when we don't get cured or whatever, she'll be upset. Don't you understand? Our family is splitting apart and one of the main reasons is our relationship. So if we just get rid of all our feelings for each other, we can all go back to the way we were. It will be easier that way. If we do the spell, I might lose you. But if we don't do the spell, I'll lose you for sure."

"The spell. That's the easy way out. Don't you want to fight for something better, Alex?"

"That's the easy way? Then I don't want to find out what the hard way is."

"But the baby."

"The baby will be perfectly fine." She sniffled and pulled the phone slightly away from her so Justin won't hear her cry. "We'll have a new brother. It's how things are supposed to be."

"Alex…"

She could almost see him with his eyebrows furrowed, deep in thought. Like always, he was probably weighing the pros and cons of the situation, making a t-chart in his mind, trying to make the best possible decision. But, see, he shouldn't have to make a decision at all. She walked over to the desk and picked up the letter.

"You didn't return the form yet," she said.

"What?"

"The acceptance letter. I'm in your room right now, I have the letter in my hand, and it says you have to mail in your decision letters by May 1, how come you haven't mailed it yet? How come you haven't even filled it out?"

"Well, I kind of haven't been home the last few days."

"You left the letter here on purpose."

"So?"

"So, that's not right. You can't throw away your future for me, Justin. I'm supposed to be the slacker, not you. Please, let's just do the spell. Then you'll go to Harvard and become a doctor, and I'll eventually go to some college that accepts me, and we'll lead normal lives. No strings attached."

Justin sighed.

"So it's settled then? You'll come over tomorrow when Mom and Max are at the hospital and we'll perform the spell."

Taking his silence as acquiescence, Alex smiled weakly. Now they had a plan. A really shitty plan, but a plan. She felt like the large weight that's been continuously growing the past six months was finally lifted.

"Wait, Alex. Is there any way I can change your mind?"

"No." Her voice faltered a little. She hoped he didn't notice. He did.

"I love you." He said it so soft, she wasn't sure if she heard it at all. But it was still enough to make her heart flutter.

"Yes, well, that's the problem, isn't it?"

She quickly pressed the 'end' button before she could say "I love you" back.

* * *

**[April 29, 2010]**

Jerry opened the curtains to their hotel room; the morning sunlight poured in through the window. It's a beautiful day. But it shouldn't be a beautiful day.

"Your mother never exactly said I wasn't allowed to go see her at the hospital," Jerry mused.

Justin flipped through the channels aimlessly. "I'm sure it was implied when she said she never wanted to see you again."

The clock in the room showed 9:57 am. "I've got a little over twelve hours to save my family and my marriage," Jerry stated.

"Good luck," Justin responded.

* * *

Alex had gone over to Harper's house for lunch (for Harper insisted on showing Alex her duct tape prom dress thus far) so Theresa was only making burritos for two. But just as she took the burritos out of the oven, she clenched her stomach and yelled in pain. "MAX!"

"What's wrong, Mom?" Max rushed over. "You're not having the baby already, are you? It's only 12."

"My water didn't break yet," Theresa said, "but it hurts. So much."

"Okay, uh, let's go down and get a taxi."

When they arrived at the hospital, they were surprised to hear the receptionist say that a room was already prepared for her. But then again, the nurses saw them in their flashforwards too. The doctor came into the room soon afterwards. He did a quick check-up: pulse, blood pressure, temperature. That's when the doctor's face changed from calm to concerned. He rechecked Theresa's temperature again, and then frowned.

"Mrs. Russo, you have a 101 fever."

Another contraction of pain seared through her body and Theresa groaned. Only now did she realize this pain was different than the ones she experienced before giving birth to Justin, Alex, and Max. She coughed and felt sweat forming on her forehead. What was happening?

"Have you been sick for a while?" the doctor questioned.

"No, I was fine just this morning," Theresa answered.

The doctor scribbled on his clipboard. His frown showed that, indeed, something was wrong. "We're going to take you in for some extra tests."

"Doctor," Theresa called out before he left, "is the baby going to be okay?"

"Yes, of course." But you could see the doubt in the doctor's eyes.

Max was pacing the room when the doctor came back a few hours later. Theresa clenched her son's hand and looked up. "So?"

"It's…well, it's rather strange, actually," the doctor explained. "I've never seen this happen, but your body's immune system is kicking in. That's why you have a fever. But you don't seem to have a virus. No, it seems…it seems like your immune system is trying to fight your baby."

"What?"

"You are showing the same side-effects that patients who received an organ transplant have. For some reason, your body is detecting your child as something foreign."

"Something foreign?" The question got stuck in Theresa's throat. She looked at Max who only shrugged. Could this really be Alex and Justin's baby? It's not possible. Then another contraction hit, as if trying to tell Theresa that yes, this is possible.

"Because we saw you delivering the baby on this day in the flashforwards, we put April 29th as your due date. Technically, the baby's estimated due date shouldn't be for another three weeks. We figured it was just be a slightly premature baby, and nothing is wrong with that. But now I think I know the reason for your early birth. As that child grows and develops more, your body becomes more aware that the baby is in there. We need to get your son out as soon as possible, before…before your immune system kills him."

This was too much, too stressful. Theresa couldn't think with all these truths flying at her. Plus, her fever was making her burn up.

"I'm afraid we'll have to do C-section," the doctor finally said.

* * *

Soon after, Theresa was wheeled into the surgery room and Max waited out in the guest area.

Back at Waverly Place, Alex returned home to find it empty.

Jerry paced the New York streets, waiting for a miracle.

Justin grabbed his wand and began walking towards the substation, all the while trying to find the courage to perform a spell he could never find the heart to cast.

It was just an ordinary day.

* * *

After Justin let himself into the house, he found Alex lying sprawled out on her bed, staring at the ceiling. He began to wonder if she heard him enter at all, but when he sat down on the bed beside her, she looked at him and smiled.

"I missed you," he said.

She smirked. "I know."

He playfully hit her leg, which made her punch his arm, which made him tickle her stomach, which made her roll away and squeal, which somehow resulted in him on top of her, pining her down.

"Hi," she said, giggling.

He kissed her nose and rolled off to lie beside her. They both knew why they were here, but were both afraid. Neither one wanted to lose all the love quite yet.

"Let's watch a movie," Alex exclaimed, leaping off the bed to fetch her laptop. "_The Princess Bride_?"

"Actually, I really wanted to watch that new—"

"_The Princess Bride _it is." Alex inserted the disc of her favorite movie (because Alex Russo loves fairytale romances, even if she'll never admit it) and snuggled up against Justin. He only laughed at her classic-Alex, inconsiderate manner and wrapped his arms around her tight, tight, tight.

When the movie was over, it was only seven. They weren't in a big rush—besides, the flashforward made it obvious that they wouldn't cast the spell until after the two minutes and thirteen seconds of the flashforward.

"You hungry?" Alex asked, grabbing his hand and pulling him down the stairs.

They heated up Max and Theresa's uneaten burritos and ate at the table, sharing laughs and kisses in between. If only they could bottle up this emotion, this undeniable love, and save it for a rainy day. After this was all over, after they've done the spell, maybe they could take out this bottle of love and remember, if only for a while.

* * *

The clock was getting closer and closer to 10:00 pm; life was getting closer and closer to what was predicted in the flashforwards of October 6th. A street party had already started. Music was being pumped out of speakers, drinks were being handed out readily, and endless people danced and swayed in the middle of the street, celebrating Flashforward Day. Because they've made it. We've all made it.

Jerry pushed his way through the crowd and walked along the sidewalk. Max called him earlier to inform his that Theresa is already in the hospital and has to get a C-section. Jerry is worried beyond a doubt, but what can he do? He's been punished for a crime he never committed, only because the punishment was in the flashforward. I mean, who says all flashforwards come true anyway?

But just as he thought this, he rounded the corner and found himself in front of the very café that he saw in his flashforward. Looking down, he realized he had unintentionally put on the same outfit as in his flashforward this morning. He took a random seat at a table and only after he had sat down did he realize this was the exact table he sat in his flashforward. And then he heard it: "Jerry Russo!" Spinning around, there stood Tina Goldberg. It all seemed so inevitable.

"Jerry! It's so good to see you! It's been so long!" she exclaimed after taking a seat across from him. Just like the flashforward.

"Wow, Tina!" Jerry greeted back with fake enthusiasm. "Imagine the odds of running into you. What are you doing here in New York?"

"I live here now! I got a job in the publishing firm!" She smiled. Of course, the two of them already knew that. It was unnecessary to repeat the entire conversation, but some impelling force seemed to be pushing them to carry on.

"Wow," Jerry managed to say.

"Yeah! Isn't it ironic, one of the reasons I broke up with you is because I loathed the thought of living in the city, yet here I am! In the city!"

"Yeah. Really ironic."

They were in comfortable waters then, but now they were reaching the part of the conversation that neither looked forward to. But they couldn't just leave it like that. So Tina took a breath and continued the conversation, if only just to see what will happen afterwards. "How have you been, Jerry?"

"Good. Well, as good as a dad with three teenage children can be." He felt emotionless, like a horrible actor deadpanning his lines, as he explained all the current problems in his life to Tina. "…Because she kicked me out of the house."

"What? Why on earth would she do that?"

Here, Jerry laughed. A dry, hollow laugh. "That's the best part. She kicked me out of the house because that's how it was in the flashforward. Well, and a few other reasons…" _That I'd rather not mention._

"Like what?"

Jerry sighed. Looks like he'll have to mention them after all. "Um, Theresa did think that I was cheating on her. With you."

Tina's mouth dropped in horror. "Oh dear! Then it was a really bad idea for me to go to the substation and ask if you were there."

"YOU WHAT?" Jerry cried.

"I wanted to see you earlier," Tina explained. "I mean, we were best friends once, right? Ever since I moved to New York, I thought I would bump into you, because it seemed unlikely that we'll be in the same city for so long and never meet until today! Then I got impatient and I heard that you owned a sub shop at Waverly so I went there looking for you. I'm so sorry! Maybe I gave Theresa the wrong impression?"

Jerry sunk into his seat. "You think?"

* * *

When Theresa awoke again, she was back in her hospital room and the clock on the wall read 9:49 pm. She felt feverish and was sweating buckets under the thick blanket. Before, she always assumed she got in this messy state after delivering the baby. She never thought the baby would be taken out through surgery; now she had no excuse to be sweaty and disgusting.

"Max?" she called out. Her son looked up from the chair he sat in and walked over. "Where's the baby?" she asked.

"The nurses are giving him a bath and making sure he's healthy," he reassured. "This whole mom-having-her-daughter's-baby thing is kind of rare, so they're double checking everything."

Theresa gently rubbed her stomach where several stitches held together what would later become one large scar. "The doctor said the baby was something 'foreign.' So, the baby really is Alex and Justin's? But it doesn't make any sense!"

"We're wizards," Max said. "I got used to nonsense a long time ago."

Theresa groaned and pressed the button to make the bed rise so she could sit up. Here she was in the hospital with only Max to accompany her. Just like the flashforward. It's kind of funny how everything turned out.

"But even if the baby is Alex and Justin's son," Theresa pointed out, "it's not like they're at a point in their lives where they can raise the kid."

"You could raise the baby," Max said. "And then after five years or something, Alex and Justin can take over. To the world, they'll be three siblings. But to them, and to us, they'll be a family."

Max was right. He seemed to be right a lot lately. "When did you grow up?" Theresa mused.

"So is everything good? Are you going to let Dad and Justin move back again? Can we be a family again?" Max asked, with a spark of childlike naivety.

Theresa wasn't ready to deal with Jerry yet. But Justin and Alex…it's wrong, incest is wrong. Of course, they can't have children, but then again, wasn't this baby really theirs (in a way)? It's against Theresa's morals to allow her two children to be together; yet when you really thought about it, is it hurting anyone? No. Alex's words from before echoed through her thoughts. _It would help if our own mother wasn't against us too. _She doesn't want to be the bad guy anymore.

"They really love each other? Justin and Alex?"

"Sure looks like it."

Justin is 18 and Alex is 17. Soon, they'll be legal adults and Theresa can't tell them what to do, even if she wanted to. So the question remains thus: does she separate the two for the time being (until they're old enough to move out and get together anyway and then end up hating their own mother) or does she allow them to be together and give them her blessing? Because, let's be honest, if Alex and Justin really are sick, then they've been sick their whole lives and no wonder therapist can cure it.

"They can still be happy together, you know," Max said.

Theresa shut her eyes. All these thoughts plus the fever were making her dizzy. "I know."

"I'm going to get the nurse," Max announced, opening the door.

Later, the clock struck ten and in walked Max with the two nurses. When Theresa held the baby for the first time, she couldn't help but notice that he had Alex's eyes but Justin's face. Alex and Justin could never have a child otherwise. Would Theresa really take this child away from them?

"So what's his name?"

And after long contemplation, she just couldn't do it. She couldn't name the baby when, deep in her heart, she knew he was Alex and Justin's single chance at happily ever after. She couldn't lose two of her children because of this.

"Can you come back in fifteen, twenty minutes, please?"

"Um, sure…but what about the baby's name?"

"I don't know yet."

The nurses left, Max smiled, and the baby slept contentedly in her arms.

"Call your brother and sister," Theresa said. "Tell them to come over."

Max's smile faltered as he pressed some buttons on his phone. "Wait, I don't have any signal here." He stood up and waved the phone in all the corners of the room, yet his phone stayed at zero bars. A notification popped up: _Unable to send message to Alex Russo_.

A horrific realization dawned upon Max. "Oh no."

"What?" Theresa asked in alarm.

"What if…what if Justin and Alex are doing the Lover's Regret Spell?"

"The Lover's what?"

"The Lover's Regret Spell. It's like a memory charm. It erases all feelings two people have for each other."

"Why would they do that?"

"Because they don't know that you accept them. They think it will be easier this way. They think everything is their fault. Oh no. Stupid phone. I still have no service."

"You have to stop them, Max! I'm letting them be together. This is their son. Stop them, Max. Stop them before it's too late."

Max quickly searched his pockets for his wand so he could teleport himself back home, but in vain. "Shoot! I left my wand at home."

"Are you serious? The one time I'm asking you to use magic, the one time we have an actual emergency, you can't?"

Giving his mom an apologetic shrug, Max grabbed his phone and ran out into the hallway, desperately hoping to get a signal to call his siblings to stop them from making the biggest mistake of their lives.

* * *

She kissed him with the same urgency they both felt in their flashforwards, only now they understood why. Because they only had mere minutes to be together before the spell changes it all. It's what they agreed on. It's what they both wanted. But we all know that's a lie.

"Justin…" she whispered before climbing on top of him and playing out their flashforward. Her hands roamed his body; skin on skin. Every touch, every kiss made the fire inside burn brighter. Time was running out, time was running out, time had run out.

_We don't have to do this_. He's been trying to say that for the past hour. But every time the words get close to surfacing, she looks at him with those jaded eyes and the words sink once more. _Yes, we do._

Her hands ran down to his jeans and as she's about to unbutton it, he reached down to stop her. "We can't." Not when they're going to forget all they ever felt a few minutes later. Not when everything will soon be reduced to nothing.

"But Justin."

"No."

She glanced at the clock again. 10:07 pm. It's time. They've waited long enough.

With shaky hands, they got up from the bed. She picked up her wand from her bedside table. He fetched his shirt that was lying on the ground, put it back on, and retrieved his wand as well. Slowly, painfully slowly, they stood facing one another, wands at the ready.

"Now for this to work, we have to both say the spell at the exact same time," Justin said. "We must concentrate and be completely focused or else we might wipe out our memories forever. We need—"

"Alright, I get it!" she interrupted. She took a deep breath, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and stared at Justin.

"Ready?" he asked.

She nodded. Just barely.

"_Sincere heart, forgive my mistake…_"

At the word _mistake_, a sob escaped her and she rushed forward to envelop him in a hug. Because they weren't a _mistake_. Days, weeks, months of pretending she was fine finally had its toll. She was breaking in these final hours.

"Oh Alex," he whispered, rubbing her back and she cried into his shoulder, "there's still time to back out. We don't have to do this."

"But we do."

"No, we don't. Look, Mom can't stop us forever. We're practically adults now. We can do whatever we want. I mean, we can move away to some faraway town. We can start over. No one will know we're brother and sister. And we can bring the baby with us. We can be a family. The Russos."

"But you're going to Harvard."

"I won't go then. Alex, I just want to be with you."

She sobbed again, clinging onto him. "Y-y-you would really dr-drop out of college for m-me?"

"I'd do anything for you," he said, leaning down to kiss her. She groaned at his overly cheesy, cliché word choice, but kissed him regardless.

After a moment she pulled back. "Thanks, Justin. But I can't let you."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't let you be some hero right now. You _are _going to Harvard. You _are _going to be successful and make everyone proud. We are not going to lose our family over this. And if that means we have to do the spell, then so be it."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

"Well, if I never send in my decision letter, I won't be able to go to Harvard even if I wanted to." He ran into his room searching for the letter and the return decision form with every intention to burn the papers into ashes right then and there. As he rummaged through his desk and then the rest of his room, she slowly walked into the room and leaned against the wall. "Where is it?" he yelled at her.

"I sent it."

He froze and spun around. "You what?"

"I filled it out, saying you just couldn't wait to attend school there, and I mailed it, just this morning."

"Why would you do that?" he whispered, with a hurt expression on his face.

"In case this happens," she replied, gesturing between the two of them. "In case we have second thoughts."

He walked up to her and placed a hand on her cheek. "Why do you want to do the spell so much?"

She closed her eyes and a single tear rolled down to his finger. "I want this pain to stop."

(Somewhere back in Alex's room, her phone vibrated, the screen flashing with the words: _1 New Message from Max_.)

"There are so many other options," Justin said in a last-ditch effort to fight what was already a lost cause.

"Maybe," she sighed wistfully. "Remember your Many Worlds Theory project? Well for the record, I hate the stupid world we're in right now."

"Me too." He kissed her forehead. "Me too."

Once again, they stepped back so they were facing each other and then raised their wands. With hearts breaking at every word, they chanted the spell. "_Sincere heart, forgive my mistake. Erase all my love for…_"

"…_Alex Russo,_" Justin said.

"…_Justin Russo,_" Alex said.

Two flashes of bright yellow light erupted from both wand tips. They watched intently as the light traveled around the room, spinning and spinning until both of them were sucked into a vortex of light. Two strands of light came closer until it touched their chest and went deeper to touch their heart.

"I love you," he muttered, before the love was erased once and for all.

"I love you too," she replied. She watched the light grow brighter.

And then the clock struck 10:14 pm, Eastern Standard Time.

* * *

In Los Angeles, one FBI agent snuck back into his office where he strung all the clues together and came to a startling conclusion. There was going to be another blackout on April 29, 2010, at ten-fourteen pm. How was he going to alert the whole world that another blackout was coming with only a few minutes to spare?

A nurse at the New York City Hospital was watching television when her show stopped abruptly to a live broadcast with the subtitle _BREAKING NEWS. _Across the hospital, across the city, across the entire world, all televisions and radios switched over to this news station from Los Angeles. Maybe they couldn't warn everyone. But this was as close as they could get. "There will be another blackout in approximately two minutes at 10:14 pm. We advise everyone to lie down somewhere safe. If you are driving, pull over as soon as possible. Please help and inform everyone you know. Again, another blackout is coming. Please do not panic and be prepared."

Theresa set the baby in his crib and then reclined in her bed. From the open doorway, she watched nurses, patients, and visitors pull out their cell phones to call their loved ones as they sat down on the floor. She hoped beyond hope that her family was okay, hoped beyond hope that it wasn't too late, before she fell unconscious.

Max ran, leaped, and dodged through all the blackout pandemonium until he reached the parking lot outside. Yes, he had a signal! Two security guards had sat down on the steps in anticipation for the upcoming blackout. Max sat down a few steps below them and fumbled with the keys as he dialed Alex's number. When she didn't answer, and Justin didn't answer either, he dialed the home phone in one last attempt. But just as the phone rang the second time, Max fell back against the railing and the phone slipped out of his hands and hit the cement below. The phone kept ringing until it reached the voicemail.

"There's going to be another blackout!" Tina said, reading a new text she just received. In the streets, the crowd was still partying in oblivion. But before Jerry could even warn the guy sitting at the next table, time ran out and he fell forwards, head hitting the table.

Alex and Justin with the bright light swirling around them, both fell limp onto the carpet. The brilliant light was extinguished and their wands rolled out of their hands. Besides the ringing telephone from downstairs, all was quiet.

And this time, the Russos all had the same flashforward.

_Jerry, Theresa, Max, Alex, and the baby were standing in the NYC airport. The baby really wasn't a baby anymore, he looked about three years old, and he held onto Alex's hand, pointing at random objects around the busy airport._

_Meanwhile, Justin stepped off a plane and walked down the terminal, rolling a suitcase behind him. The man walking beside him held a newspaper. Justin saw that the date was December 19, 2013._

_Justin stepped out of the gate and immediately saw his family waiting for him. They all rushed together, as a family, and hugged. Alex didn't even complain._

"_Welcome back, Justin," Theresa said with a big smile. "Oh, you've grown skinnier the last time I saw you. Harvard is making you study too hard!"_

"_Good to see you, son," Jerry gave Justin's shoulder a squeeze and took his suitcase for him._

"_Wow, Max, did you get taller again?" Justin asked. Max was his height now. They both laughed._

_Then the little boy went forward and hugged Justin's legs. "I missed you, Justin."_

_Justin bent down and picked up his baby brother. "I missed you too, buddy."_

_The boy smiled an adorable smile. "And did you miss Alex too?"_

"_Of course I did." Justin shifted his brother so he was carrying him with one hand and wrapped the other arm around Alex._

"_Well, I totally did not miss you. Like, at all." Alex smirked._

"_But you said you—" their little brother argued._

"_Shhhh!" Alex said, cutting the toddler off before he could reveal that Alex had, indeed, missed Justin terribly. The whole family laughed. And they were just another family, two parents, four kids, reuniting for the holidays. Some people waiting for a plane nearby smiled at the heartwarming sight._

_Then Jerry, Theresa, and Max walked ahead towards the exit while Justin, Alex, and their little brother walked a few feet behind. Quietly, so no one walking by could hear, the little boy whispered, "I'm glad you're home, Daddy."_

_Justin gave Alex an alarmed look at the word 'Daddy'. "Relax, he knows to call you Justin when he's in public," Alex explained. "He knows that, to the world, we're his older brother and sister. But he also knows the truth."_

"_You told him?" Justin asked in shock._

"_No. He figured it out himself," Alex answered, ruffling the boy's hair. "He's a smart kid. Probably got it from you."_

_Justin smiled. "Well then, I'm glad I'm home too."_

_The little boy wriggled out of Justin's hold and onto the ground. He took Justin's hand in his left hand and Alex's in his right. "Swing!" he demanded. So together, hand in hand, the three of them walked through the airport, with Justin and Alex swinging the boy by his arms every couple of steps. Two ladies walking by laughed and told Alex her son was really cute. She didn't even bother to correct them. They were brothers and sister, yes, but sometimes when they're at a place full of people who don't know better, they don't have to pretend._

* * *

Justin blinked and found himself back in the present, lying on the floor of his room. He sat up slowly and looked to his right to find Alex doing the same.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah. Did we just have another flashforward?"

"I think so."

Justin got up and picked up his wand. Then he remembered the spell. "Wait, did the spell work? I think we fainted before it was over."

Alex immediately clutched her heart, where a magic glow had touched minutes earlier. "I don't know. Do you still love me?"

Did he love Alex? Yes, but what if that was just fraternal love? Hmm. Did he want to kiss Alex? (She bit her lower lip as she awaited his answer.) Yes, he really wanted to kiss her. So he did.

"I'm guessing the spell didn't work, then," Alex giggled, after they pulled apart from the kiss. "But how?"

"The spell needed a lot of focus, remember? When we fainted, we weren't even conscious, much less concentrating on the spell."

"Saved by the flashforward," she murmured.

He smiled. "Yes indeed."

They both sat down on his bed. The spell was long forgotten and very much useless since their new flashforward showed a brighter future. They weren't quite sure _how _things would work out. They just knew that, in the end, it did. The house phone began ringing again. Alex and Justin ran downstairs and Alex answered. "Hello?"

"Thank god you answered. It's not too late, is it? Did you do the spell?" Max asked, all in one breath.

"No, we didn't," Alex said. "It's going to be okay."

"Yeah, it is. Now get over here and see your new brother slash son. Mom's waiting for you to name him, so come over quick."

"Is this quick enough?" Alex had flashed Justin and herself onto the stair steps right behind Max, consequently scaring their little brother. Justin opened his mouth to protest Alex's blatant use of magic, but figured it useless and the three Russos ran back into the hospital to Theresa's room.

"He's so precious," Alex cooed once she reached the crib by her mother's bedside.

"He is your son," Theresa said gently.

Alex's eyes widened. "Really?"

Theresa reached out and squeezed Alex's hands. "I support you. I…you and Justin should be together. I saw the way you two looked at each other in the flashforward. I was wrong to try to tear you apart. And I'm sorry."

Justin walked up and wrapped an arm around Alex's waist. "We can still be a family," he said.

"I know that now." Theresa smiled. "Speaking of which, I think someone is missing here. Max, call your father."

As Max walked out the door to call Jerry, one of the nurses returned to the room. "Alright, Mrs. Russo, what's the name of the baby?"

Theresa looked at her two older children. "Wait, you sure you want us to name him?" Alex asked in disbelief. Their mother only nodded.

"Evan?" Justin suggested. "It's a Celtic name and it means young fighter. Because that's exactly what he is. He fought his way through destiny's mistakes to land at last in his parents' arms."

"No, it should be Kai," Alex countered. "Because I just like that name."

"I spent a long time researching names!" Justin argued. "He's Evan!"

"Too bad!" Alex said. "He's Kai!"

"Well...I'm older! I get to pick!"

"I'm the girl. Ladies first!"

By now, the nurse was looking at the two like they were completely nuts.

"Fine," Justin took a deep breath. "What about Blake? It means dark-haired."

"Thank you, Mr. Walking Dictionary," Alex muttered. She looked at the sleeping baby and smiled. "Hmm. Blake. I actually like it." She turned to face the nurse. "His name is Blake. Blake Kai Russo."

Half an hour later, Jerry walked into the hospital room. With a whole round of "I'm sorry"s and "it's okay"s, the Russo family was finally on its way to reconciliation. They learned to trust each other again. They learned to forgive each other. It's ironic how the first flashforward initiated all these conflicts, but the second flashforward would be the key to solve all these problems. Destiny was a funny thing.

When Theresa and Jerry's conversation started to turn sappy and teary, Alex took Justin's hand and led him to the baby's crib. Gently, she reached in and picked Blake up. In his mother's arms for the first time, Blake's eyes blinked open. In awe, Justin reached over and Blake grabbed Justin's hand, his whole hand clenched around Justin's pinky finger. Alex leaned down and kissed Blake's forehead, then Justin leaned down and kissed Alex's forehead, and all three of them laughed.

With Justin off to college, little Blake just born, and a secret incestuous relationship in bloom, life was going to be difficult as hell, that's for sure. But they'll make it, one step and a time. Because this is what destiny had planned all along. Sometimes, you just have to take a leap of faith and see where life takes you. This family will be just fine. After all, they saw it in the flashforward.

[The end.]

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**Over 7,000 words, over 17 pages, hopefully this chapter was worth it. Now, I know what you're thinking. Is this the end? Yes, and no. I'm totally a sucker for happily ever after and all that cheesy, gooey, rainbow-unicorn type of endings. But I like how this ending turned out, how the future is still blurry, how you don't know for sure what happened to Alex and Justin. However, I'm not quite ready to let this story go yet. So there (might) be an epilogue.**

**Thanks again to Baku babe, awesome beta buddy, for proofing this chapter (I hope you liked the naming banter between Alex and Justin at the end!) Thank you to Ria-Dancer girl, too, for helping with previous chapters. Hugs to all you readers and reviewers, you guys are all wonderful people.**

**Credit goes to ABC's _Flashforward _for inspiring this story, He is We's "Pardon Me" for inspiring the Lover's Regret Spell, and I used a quote from _Carriers _in this chapter, a gold star for whoever finds it.**

**It's been super fun writing this, you guys. Stick around for the epilogue, which will most likely happen. And if you wanted a April Fool's scene but I never sent you one, please tell me. That's about it, I think. ****Review one more time? **


	9. May

**Before you read this epilogue, I would just like to have a fangirl moment to gush about how cute the ending of Wizards vs. Angels was. From the moment Alex walked into the lair, I was chanting "Jalex, Jalex, Jalex, Jalex." Everything about that scene was tummy-tickling adorable. Can someone make me a trailer for this story using that scene and the trailer for Flashforward? Please?**

**Okay, fangirl rant over. You may proceed.**

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_Epilogue:_

[May 8, 2010]

It was two in the afternoon and Alex, popcorn bowl in hand, was ready to watch all her missed shows on TiVo. She turned the volume just high enough to bother Justin, who was studying at the kitchen table. Jerry and Max were working in the Sub Station downstairs and Theresa was upstairs with Blake.

It reeked of normalcy.

"I'm going to the store," Theresa announced, walking downstairs. "I just got Blake to take a nap but if he wakes up, just feed him a bottle, okay?"

"Were you talking to me?" Alex asked.

Theresa raised an eyebrow and placed her hand on her hip. "No, I was talking to your brother who is currently buried in all his books," she replied sarcastically.

Alex shrugged and tossed some more popcorn in her mouth. "Okay, cool."

With a sigh, Theresa walked out the door. Justin peeked over his pile of AP review books. "You know," he said, "it would be awesome if you took some responsibilities every once in a while. Just saying."

"Yeah, yeah." She didn't bother turning around to face him, instead she just raised her arm and waved his comment away. "I'll feed Blake if he wakes up. But he's not going to wake up, so relax."

The second those words left her mouth, Blake's whimpers could be heard through the baby monitor. Justin stifled a laugh and Alex groaned. "Are you kidding me?"

"Well. Go." Justin said with a smile.

Alex ignored him and turned the TV louder.

"Turning the volume up won't make Blake stop crying, Alex."

On cue, Blake gave a piercing shriek.

"Why can't you get him?" Alex whined.

"Because Mom asked you."

"But I have to go through all the trouble of pressing pause and then physically walking upstairs to get Blake. And it's a _Saturday_."

"Oh, you poor thing."

"I do not appreciate your tone, Justin."

Blake cried out again, as if saying _hello? Did you forget about me?_

"Just go, Alex!"

"No. I mean, you're his technically-but-not-really father."

"And you are his technically-but-not-really mother. Your logic fails."

"But Justin!"

"But Alex!"

"Gah. Fine." She unwillingly trudged upstairs, picked Blake up in her arms, and walked back down the stairs. Blake immediately stopped crying once he was in her arms, and that made her smile.

Once she entered the kitchen again, Justin chuckled. "See, now was _all that _exercise so bad?"

"No, I guess not." She smiled sweetly, walked up to Justin, bent down, and kissed his cheek.

"What was that for?" he asked.

She only shrugged and plopped back down on the couch. That's when Justin realized Blake had somehow wound up in his arms, his bottle sitting right on top of his notes.

"Alex!"

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**Sorry this epilogue took FOREVER to write. And it's not even that great. The main reason is that I liked last chapter's ending too much and I though an epilogue would only decrease the ending's effect. I still think this short epilogue is unnecessary, but I promised an epilogue, so here you go :)**

**Now that this story is finally over, I can focus on other stories without the guilt of leaving this one hanging. My next project will be to finish Black Hole (if you read that story, please message me! I need your opinion on something) and rewrite Around the Campfire. I will probably have a WOWP oneshot up too because I'm so in love with the ending of Wizards vs. Angels (see AN above).**

**Again, thanks for reading. Help a friend out and review? 11 more until 200, we can do it!**


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